HASP ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

October 1, 2008: HASP CALL FOR PAYLOADS 2009 RELEASED: The HASP Call for Payloads 2009 (CFP) has been released and application materials are now available on the HASP website “Participant Info” page. Student groups interested in applying for a seat on the September 2009 flight of HASP should download these materials and prepare an application.

High Altitude Student Payload -- Participant Information Page

September 11, 2008: NASA SUPPORTS HASP FOR THREE MORE YEARS: The NASA Balloon Program Office recently decided to support the HASP program for at least three more years. Thus, we anticipate continuing HASP flight for students in 2009, 2010 and 2011. The HASP Call for Payloads 2009 will be released later this month. Student groups interesting in competing for a 2009 HASP flight seat should review the material found on the Participant Info page of the HASP website in preparation for the CFP release.

High Altitude Student Payload -- Participant Information Page

September 11, 2008: HASP 2008 CERTIFIED TO FLY: HASP completed compatibility testing with the CSBF balloon systems today. This included exercising all student payloads, downlinking data and uplinking commands through the transcerivers, and checking that all mechanical fitments are correct. The testing was followed by the Flight Readiness Review (FRR) where the flight plan was detailed, all electronics was certified and recovery plans were reviewed. No outstanding issues were uncovered during the FRR and HASP is now certified for launch. The earliest opportunity is identified as this Saturday at 7:30 am (Mountain Daylight Time). The next weather briefing is scheduled for Friday at 2:00 pm where the final decision to show for the Saturday launch opportunity will be made.

April, 2008: HASP 2007 Scientific Data results posted.  The Scientific reports can be found on the HASP Flight 2007 Information page.

September 17, 2007: HASP CALL FOR PAYLOADS 2007-2008 RELEASED: The HASP Call for Payloads 2007-2008 (CFP) has been released and application materials are now available on the HASP website “Participant Info” page. Student groups interested in applying for a seat on the September 2008 flight of HASP should download these materials and prepare an application. New for this year is an increase in the allowed weight of the student payloads. Small class payloads can now mass up to 3 kilograms and large class payloads can weigh as heavy as 20 kilograms. Applications are due December 18, 2007 and selections will be announced by mid-January 2008.

September 4, 2007: HASP 2007 RECOVERY SUCCESSFUL: HASP was successfully recovery from a freshly irregated farm field near Poston, AZ during the morning of September 3. In the words of one of the CSBF managers, "You had a very soft landing!" The recovery crew returned HASP to Ft. Sumner by late afternoon of September 4, where we had a first look at the landing damage. Almost all of the student payloads appeared to have suffered very little injury during landing and recovery. The recovery crew removed most of the small payloads from the fiberglass extension booms and dismounted the UAH, MSU and ULL large payload prior to dragging HASP out of the field. They even managed to fish out from the mud one of the TAMU cameras that had broken off during landing. The HASP electronics system appeared very clean with no obvious evidence of water damage or extensive mud intrusion into the interior. Once HASP is returned to LSU next week, we will be able to do a more through assessment.


Images of the Recovery can be found here

September 02, 2007: September 2, 2007: HASP LAUNCHED: The HASP balloon payload was launched this morning at 7:12 am Mountain time (13:12 UTC). Preparation for launch began at about 3:30 am when HASP was rolled out of the hanger and picked up by the launch vehicle. Following the roll out to the launch pad the flight train and parachute was layed out, followed by the balloon. Balloon inflation began about 6:40 am and was completed about 7:05 am. Surface winds at launch were almost zero, resulting in a very smooth and graceful launch. HASP reached a float altitude of about 123,000 feet at about 9:30 am and proceeded to travel west at about 40 knots.

Images of the Launch can be found here

August 31, 2007: Today ended up being very busy. The first meeting of the morning was the Flight Requirement Review, where the science and systems requirements for flight were identified and discussed. Next we moved to the compatibility test where HASP was "hung" from the launch vehicle and all flight systems were tested. Just before the start of the hang test the last student payload arrived and was integrated. The weather briefing at 2:45 pm reviewed the expected weather conditions for the launch attempt tomorrow and, finally, we proceeded through the Flight Readiness Review. One outstanding issue is the status of the downrange communication. This should be resolved by early evening. The expectation is, therefore, to try to launch HASP tomorrow, Saturday September 1, 2007 at 7:00 am Mountain time.
Images can be found here.

August 30, 2007:  PREPARING FOR HANG TEST: Following the 37H test launch, the remainder of the day was spent getting the HASP payload ready for the compatibility test on Friday. Part of this effort involved getting CosmoCam ready and you can now go to the CosmoCam tab on the Flight Information page to get live views whenever CosmoCam is powered up. A power up check of most of the HASP payloads was also done during the afternoon. Finally, a fair amount of effort was focused on the mini-SIP and other balloon control systems.

Images can be found here.

August 30, 2007:  37H TEST LAUNCHED SUCCESSFULLY: The CSBF successfully launched a test of the 37 million Heavy balloon. The same balloon type will be used to launch the BESS experiment in Antarctica later this year. Prepration for today's launch began at about 3 am and the launch time was delayed about two hours. The balloon was released from the spool at about 9:08 am mountain time and is currently climbing out to float.

Images can be found here.

August 29, 2007:  CONTINUED PROGRESS TO FLIGHT: The weather briefing today indicates strong winds building over the weekend and lasting to mid-week next week. Thus, we are working toward a possible HASP launch opportunity early morning on Saturday, September 1. The Flight Requirements Review is scheduled for Thursday, August 30 and the Compatibility Test / Flight Readiness Review is planned for Friday, August 31. Today, Peter Arslanian from the UMES Hawk Institution arrived to complete the launch prep for their payload. In addition, the HASP parachute, flight train and UTP was packed and readied for the compatibility test. Finally, we connected HASP to the flight bridle and leveled the MSU particle capture experiment.

Images can be found here.

August 28, 2007: HASP MECHANICAL INTEGRATION: The primary event today was mechanically attaching HASP to the mini-SIP frame and control system. In addition, the mini-SIP was prepared for flight and initial communication tests between HASP and the mini-SIP were successful. Finally, the Hyper-GEOCAM group requested a configuration change to their camera. Highly qualified HASP personnel were able to open the delicate Hyper-GEOCAM payload box and perform the requested change (see daily images).

Setup images can be found by clicking here.

August 27, 2007: HASP 2007 FLIGHT PREP: The HASP flight support crew (Guzik and Stewart) arrived at the Ft. Sumner balloon launch facility and began the process of readying HASP for flight. Initial inspection of the shipping crates showed that HASP, student payloads and all support equipment suffered no damage during the transport from Palestine, Texas. Most of the day was spent geting the crates unpacked, setting up the HASP network and ground control system, configuring HASP for flight and installing the flight batteries.

Setup images can be found by clicking here.

August 23, 2007 HASP FLIGHT PREP BEGINS NEXT WEEK: The HASP balloon craft with nine student payloads integrated has been shipped to Ft. Sumner, New Mexico for the start of flight line operations next week. The HASP support crew will arrive next Monday, August 27, and begin the final assembly and systems testing. In addition, two more student payloads are expected to integrate next week, bringing the total compliment of student payloads up to eleven. The anticipated schedule calls for the HASP Compatibility Test and Mission Readiness Review (MRR) to occur on Friday, August 31. Following a successful MRR, HASP will be flight ready and can be launched at the next opportunity. The target launch date is Monday, September 3, but this may be changed depending upon surface and high altitude weather conditions.


September 20, 2006: NASA PRESS RELEASE on HASP: NASA has teamed with Louisiana State University and student groups from four universities for a launch that carried the first flight of the High Altitude Student Platform (HASP) to the near space environment of the upper atmosphere.

For the full test please click here.

September 7, 2006: HASP RETURNED TO FT. SUMNER: The payload recovery team returned Ft. Sumner late last night with HASP, the parachute and balloon control system. HASP came down in a forested area in the vicinity of the Grand Canyon. The recovery team found the payload laying on the ground on its side with the end of the flight train and parachute about 25 feet up in a tree. Examination of the equipment back at Ft. Sumner showed remarkably little damage. One of the fiberglass extension wings was broken, but all the student payloads seemed to have survived with little damage. HASP is now packed into its shipping containers and will be transported back to LSU next week.

For Images of the HASP Recovery please click here.

September 4, 2006 HASP LAUNCHED TODAY: The HASP vehicle carrying eight student built payloads from four universities was launched this morning at 9:51 am local mountain time (15:50 UTC). Preparation for launch began at 3:30 am and the instrument was rolled out to the launch pad at 6:00 am. Low altitude winds, however, remained too high causing a delay of several hours. Finally, at 8:30 am the decision to lay out the balloon was made and inflation started at 9:20 am. The ballooncraft reached a float altitude of 37.4 kilometers at about 12:40 pm. All systems on HASP performed very well and the student payloads that could be monitored collected data throughout the flight. Termination of the flight is expected at 2:00 am on September 5, 2006 (08:00 utc), which would correspond to a ~16 hour flight with 14 of those hours at float altitude.

For Images of the HASP Launch please click here.

September 1, 2006 HASP VISITS BILLY THE KID: The famous western outlaw Billy the Kid was shot and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett here in Ft. Sumner during the evening of July 14, 1881. The Kid was then buried in a nearby cemetery and today we visited his grave. It was interesting to find that even in death, Billy was still caged up. Apparently his tombstone is a hot item on the black market and has been stolen several times. Later in the morning we took a drive down some back road were we encountered road runners, antelope and a 200 megawatt wind turbine power plant. Back at the balloon base today's weather brief is still showing good weather for a HASP launch on Sunday, September 3.

August 31, 2006 FIRST HASP LAUNCH ATTEMPT: The first attempt to launch the HASP ballooncraft will take place early morning Sunday September 3, 2006. Pre-launch operations will begin about 2:30 am Mountain time (08:30 UTC) and include attaching HASP to the launch vehicle and validating all the control electronics. Roll out to the launch pad will take place about 5:00 am (11:00 UTC), with balloon inflation expected to begin about 6:00 am (12:00 UTC). The target launch time is 7:30 am (13:30 UTC).

August 29, 2006 HASP COMPLETES COMPATIBILITY TEST: Today the fully assembled HASP ballooncraft successfully completed its "compatibility" or "hang" test. This is the final phase of HASP testing and involves a "dress rehearsal" for launch operation. HASP is rolled out of the hanger and picked up by the "Big Bill" launch vehicle. The mini-SIP is powered up and radio communication between the flight and ground stations are tested. Next HASP is powered up and our uplink / downlink lines are tested. In addition, communication with the balloon, parachute and terminate control systems are verified. Finally, the ballast hopper and crush pads are attached and checked. At the end of the test we determined that the flight configuration of HASP is 1,002 pounds. The Flight Readiness Review is scheduled for tomorrow at 9:30 am and we are looking for a launch as early as this Friday.

For Images of the HASP Hang Test please click here.

August 28, 2006 HASP BALLOONCRAFT FULLY ASSEMBLED: The two major components of the HASP ballooncraft, the HASP student payload support frame and the mini-SIP frame, were mated today. Wiring between the mini-SIP and HASP was completed and communication between the two systems verified. In addition, the CosmoCam system integration was completed and tested. The final HASP "hang test" is scheduled to begin at 9am tomorrow and the Flight Readiness Review is scheduled for Wednesday at 2:30 pm.

For Images of HASP preparing for the Hang Test please click here.

August 27, 2006 VISIT TO UFO LAND: On Sunday the HASP crew took a day off to travel down to Roswell, New Mexico and Carlsbad Caverns. While we did see a number of strange sights in Roswell we did not positively identify any UFOs. Traveling on to Carlsbad we visited the famous caverns located nearby. In addition, to many spectacular formations, the caves are home to a colony of about 300,000 mexican free tail bats. At twilight we had the opportunity to witness this cloud of bat exiting the cave for their nightly search for insects.

For Images of the TUFO Land please click here.

August 26, 2006 CSBF TEST BALLOON SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED: This morning the CSBF launched a test payload using a 29 million cubic feet balloon constructed from a new thin film. The HASP students on site were able to view all the details on the balloon setup, filling and launch first hand. In addition, we were able to observe the balloon up to its float altitude on ~124,000 feet and follow it until termination of the flight several hours later. The test balloon was launched about 8:50 am local time and was terminated about 1:50 pm local. During termination we were in the CSBF control room and were able to observe views of the balloon cut-away and parachute deployment from a video camera mounted on the test payload. In HASP news, we completed integration of the Texas A & M University and University of Louisiana - Lafayette payloads. This completes the compliment of student payloads for HASP and tomorrow we will finish preparing HASP for the hang test on Monday.

For Images of the Test Balloon Launch please click here.

August 25, 2006: HASP COMPLETES FLIGHT REQUIREMENTS REVIEW Flight Requirements Review on August 24 went well. We are looking for a desired 20 hour flight at an altitude of 124,000 feet. The maximum lift of the 11 million cubic feet light balloon we will use is 2,875 pounds and the HASP weight is about 1,850 pounds (including 400 pounds drive up ballast). We may or may not be able to carry more ballast to maintain altitude after sunset. The limit is imposed by the parachute load which is currently set at 2,000 pounds. We are expecting to complete integration this weekend and do the official hang test next Monday (August 28). At that point we will be Flight Ready and are projecting a launch window from August 29 through September 8. Today the Texas A&M team arrived and we began to integrate their Geocam payload to HASP.

For Images of the FRR please click here.

August 23, 2006 INITIAL STUDENT PAYLOADS INTEGRATED WITH HASP: Today student payloads from LSU Mechanical Engineering, LSU Physics & Astronomy and the University of Alabama - Hunstville were integrated with the HASP ballooncraft. In addition, the mini-SIP was integrated with the mini-SIP frame and weighed. An initial weight for HASP will be determined tomorrow. Also tomorrow will be the flight requirements review.

For Images of Student Payload Integrations please click here.

August 22, 2006 HASP ASSEMBLY CONTINUES: Today the HASP crew completed a test mechanical integration between the mini-SIP and HASP frames. The two frames mated without a problem. We also came to a decision with the CSBF personnel as to where to mount the mini-SIP antennas. In the mean time, Mike Stewart was working the interface between the HASP electronics and the mini-SIP. This also went well and all communication links have been validated. By the end of the day, we had installed the battery packs, electronics and payload harnesses in the HASP frame. Tomorrow we should be ready to begin integrating the available student payloads.

For Images of the HASP Assembly please click here.

August 21, 2006 HASP BEGINS FLIGHT PREP: The HASP flight support crew (Mike Stewart and Greg Guzik) arrived at Ft. Sumner, NM today to begin the process of preparing HASP for its first flight. After a restful evening at the "Billy the Kid Country Inn", we arrived at the balloon base, located at the Ft. Sumner Municipal Airport and began unpacking our three crates. All equipment appears to have survived shipment without problems and we have the core structural frame configured. Mike has the Electronics Plate 1 (EP1) setup on the bench and is running through its configuration tests. The Mini-SIP is in the process of being configured and we plan to integrate HASP with it, probably sometime tomorrow. Also scheduled for tomorrow is a test of the mechanical interface between the HASP and mini-SIP support frames.

For Images of the crew unpacking HASP please click here.

 

August 14, 2006 HASP SHIPPED TO FT. SUMNER:  The HASP balloon craft plus supporting equipment was shipped today from Louisiana State University to Ft. Sumner, New Mexico.  This shipment follows the successful integration and testing of the student payloads last month.  The HASP equipment should arrive in Ft. Sumner later this week in preparation for flightline operations scheduled to begin August 21.  At that time HASP will be unpacked, assembled, tested and readied for integration with the CSBF mini-SIP and student payloads later in the week.

 

July 12, 2006 HASP INTEGRATING STUDENT PAYLOADS: During the month of July student groups will be traveling to Louisiana State University (LSU) in order to perform a compatibility check / integration with the HASP systems. These checks will include mechanical fitting, power consumption, commanding and, where required, serial communication. The student teams to visit LSU are from Alabama, Texas and Louisiana and payloads include studies of high energy cosmic rays, remote sensing, thermal measurement of the vehicle balloon and investigations of the low pressure flow characteristics of various rocket nozzles. The integration schedule is as follows:



July 14 -- Louisiana State University (Mechanical Engineering)
July 24 -- University of Alabama-Huntsville
July 28 -- Louisiana State University (Physics)
July 31 – Texas A & M University
Aug 1 – University of Louisiana-Lafayette



July 10, 2006 HASP PREPARING FOR FIRST LAUNCH: The High Altitude Student Platform has completed internal integration and is in the final stages of preparing for its first launch currently targeted for September 4, 2006 from the Fort Sumner balloon facility. One of the final steps in this preparation is integration of the student payloads which will take place this month. HASP, and associated support equipment, will then be packed and shipped to Fort Sumner by mid-August. Flightline operations at Fort Sumner are expected to begin August 21.



July 1, 2006 HASP CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS TO BE RELEASED: The 2006-2007 HASP Call for Payloads is expected to be released by Louisiana State University during September 2006. This Call will be used to solicit student groups around the nation to propose for seats on the next, 2007, flight of HASP. The Call will provide information about HASP, the student payload interface and application materials (the 2005-2006 Call for Payloads can be found here). It is anticipated the responses to the Call will be due in December 2006 and selections will be announced by January 2007.