“The Wright Stuff” 1
Colorado Space Grant Consortium
Gateway to Space
Fall 2011
Design Document
Team 7: The Wright Stuff
Written by:
Colton Hall
Brendan Lee
David Thomas
Zak Collins
Eli Nelson
Devin Bazata
November 4, 2011
Revision C
“The Wright Stuff” 2
Table of Contents
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
8.0
Mission Overview
Requirements Flow Down
Design
Management
Budget
Test Plan
Expected Results
Launch and Recovery
3
4
6
12
14
17
21
22
“The Wright Stuff” 3
1.0 Mission Overview
Mission Statement: Our BalloonSat Aliquid In Spatio will ascend to approximately 30
kilometers into the atmosphere to determine if bacterial microbes that inhabit the surface of the
earth are able to withstand the harsh environment of near space, as well as to attempt to discover
if there are bacterial microbes that inhabit the tropopause.
Our BalloonSat has two main missions, which both involve bacteria. The first mission is to
send up petri dishes, on which we have already grown bacteria (E. coli) for several days, and to
control what the bacteria are exposed to in space to observe how they are affected. There are
three main factors that we will control: temperature, UV and other cosmic radiation, and
extremely low pressure. We know that UV light will kill bacteria at high enough intensities but
we do not know if there is enough UV light in space to kill them. [1] We also know that low
temperatures will slow the rate at which the bacteria grow but we do not think that it will kill
them. We do not know how the bacteria will react to the low pressure. There will be a petri dish
that is protected from UV light but exposed to vacuum and low temperature, a petri dish that is
protected from all the factors, and a petri dish that is exposed to all of them. We will also have a
petri dish on the ground to act as a control. Another thing that could possibly kill the bacteria but
we cannot control is high acceleration, so if even the bacteria that are protected from everything
still die then the high acceleration is the cause. E. coli can still grow without the presence of
oxygen but it grows faster if there is oxygen. [2] This is important since there is less oxygen in the
stratosphere and because the petri dishes that we seal will have limited oxygen. We will test
growing the bacteria in a sealed petri dish prior to flight to observe how significantly this affects
its growth.
The purpose of this part of our mission is to see how well life can survive in the different
aspects of space. [3] One of the theories of how life began on earth is that bacteria came here on
an asteroid. For this to happen bacteria would need to be able to survive in space-like
environments, not too different from that of the stratosphere. As well as providing support or
opposition for this theory, experiments in near space could also change where we are looking for
life. If bacteria can survive, or even possibly thrive in these conditions than scientists could be
looking at asteroids and barren moons for life and not just earth-like planets.
Our second mission is to collect bacteria that live in the stratosphere. Recently scientists in
India discovered three new types of bacteria in the stratosphere but there is still not much known
about the bacteria that live there.[4] We will be attempting to discover if bacteria live in the
tropopause. We will expose a petri dish to the atmosphere once we reach the tropopause. After
that we will keep the petri dish sealed so it is not contaminated by the bacteria at lower
elevations. We should not need to protect the bacteria from UV or the low pressure since they
already live in those conditions, and doing so could contaminate or hurt these samples.
“The Wright Stuff” 4
There are two purposes to the second part of our mission. The first is to try to discover a
new type of bacteria. Only three types of bacteria living in the stratosphere have been
discovered. However, that was over India, so we believe that there is a good chance we could
discover a new type. Another purpose of collecting bacteria that lives in the stratosphere is so
that we can study them. They are highly resistant to UV light and other radiation and discovering
how they do that could be of use. Many inventions are based off of biology (such as how the
solar panel is based off of photosynthesis) and so the results of this experiment could open the
gateway to studying how bacteria resists radiation and help to discover a way for astronauts to
resist radiation and possibly make astronauts going to Mars a possibility.
References:
1: http://www.ehow.com/about_5143610_uv-light-kill-bacteria.html
2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escherichia_coli
3: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panspermia
4: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Stratosphere-Reveals-New-Bacteria-107216.shtml
2.0 Requirements Flow-Down Chart
Mission Statement: Our BalloonSat Aliquid In Spatio will ascend to approximately 30
kilometers into the atmosphere to determine if bacterial microbes that inhabit the surface of the
earth are able to withstand the harsh environment of near space, as well as to attempt to
discover if there are bacterial microbes that inhabit the tropopause.
Objective 1 (Derives from Mission Statement): Our BalloonSat will measure the inside
temperature, outside temperature, and humidity of the BalloonSat during the flight to assess
the environment.
Objective 2 (Derives from Mission Statement): Our BalloonSat will also carry our bacterial
samples into near space to test them if they can survive in that harsh environment.
Objective 3 (Derives from Mission Statement): Our BalloonSat will carry a sterile petri dish
and expose it to the atmosphere at the altitude of the tropopause to see if any bacteria live in
that environment.
Requirement 0.1 (Derives from O1) We will run the HOBO datalogger for the entirety of our
flight to gather inside and outside temperature as well as humidity data from the start to finish
of our flight.
Requirement 0.2 (Derives from O2) We will carry three different sets of bacteria to test if they
“The Wright Stuff” 5
can survive. We will expose one set of bacteria to all of the effects of near space: low
temperature, low pressure, and radiation. We will then expose one set of bacteria to just the
radiation by sealing it so it retains pressure and by heating it so it does not go to low
temperatures. Our final set will be our control and will not be exposed to any of the rigors of
near space, but will merely be on the flight as a control group. These petri dishes will remain in
their own environments for the entirety of the flight.
Requirement 0.3 (Derives from O3) Our BalloonSat will use a servo attached to the lid of the
sterile petri dish to raise the lid and open the dish, exposing it to the tropopause and allowing
for bacteria collection.
Requirement 1.1 (Derives from R0.1, R0.2, R0.3) Our BalloonSat will provide heating for the
HOBO device, the two heated petri dishes, the servo, and the Arduino through the use of a
heater and thermal insulation.
Requirement 1.2 (Derives from R0.1, R0.2, R0.3) The BalloonSat will provide structural
mounting for the HOBO, Arduino, servo, petri dishes, and other equipment. Especially, the
BalloonSat’s structure will provide secure and protected mounting for the petri dishes so that
they are not contaminated.
Requirement 1.3 (Derives from R0.3) Our BalloonSat will use an Arduino Board to activate
the servo at specific times, so that our petri dish is exposed starting at an altitude 1000 feet
below and reseal at 1000 feet above the tropopause.
Requirement 2.1: Thermal Sub-system (Derives from R1.1) The BalloonSat’s heater will
maintain a temperature of no less than -10 degrees Celsius for the duration of the flight.
Kapton thermal insulation taped to the exterior of the BalloonSat will limit the loss of heat.
Requirement 2.2: Structural Sub-system (Derives from R1.2) The BalloonSat will be
constructed from Foam Core to provide structure and protection for the equipment so that it is
not damaged during flight. Hot glue and Aluminum tape will hold the structure together.
Requirement 2.3:Science Sub-system (Derives from R1.3) We will use temperature vs time
data from previous flights so that our Arduino can use time to determine the correct time to
deploy the petri dish. (The servo will be deployed near the tropopause, which corresponds to
the lowest temperatures during flight).
Requirement 2.4: Science Sub-system (Derives from 1.1, 1.2, 1.3) Four petri dishes will be
attached with hot glue. One petri dish will be placed in the enclosed portion of the BalloonSat,
where it will be heated and protected from UV by the walls of the BalloonSat. One petri dish
will be sealed but placed on the exposed upper deck of the BalloonSat, and another will be left
“The Wright Stuff” 6
unsealed and exposed on the upper deck. The last petri dish, also on the upper deck, will be
sealed but will be attached to the servo arm.
Requirement 2.5: Power Sub-system (Derives from R1.1, R1.3) Nine-volt batteries will
provide power for the heater and the Arduino (as well as indirectly powering the servo
attached to the Arduino). External switches will activate the heater and Arduino.
Requirement 2.6: Command Sub-system (Derives from R1.3) The Arduino will be
programmed to have the servo open and later close the petri dish at the correct times. The
HOBO will be programmed to start recording data after a time delay so that it begins recording
shortly before launch.
3.0 Design
RFP Design Requirements
#
Requirement
Summary of Completion
Page
with
Details
1.
Design shall have additional
experiment(s) that collects science data
and teams must analyze this data.
We are sending up bacteria and
observing how their growth is
affected and collecting bacteria
from the stratosphere.
3, 10
2.
After flight, BalloonSat shall be turned
in working and ready to fly again.
The BalloonSat should stay intact 23
so that the petri dishes remain
undamaged. Any structural
damage shall be repaired.
3.
Flight string interface tube shall be a
non-metal tube through the center of
the BalloonSat and shall be secured to
the box so it will not pull through the
BalloonSat or interfere with the flight
string.
Yes. A flight string will be
placed through the center of the
Balloon Sat. It will be secured to
the box in order to not interfere
with any other of the
BalloonSat’s functions.
9
4.
Internal temperature of the BalloonSat
shall remain above -10˚C during the
flight.
We will use heaters and Kapton
insulation to keep it above -10˚C.
9
5.
Total weight shall not exceed 850
grams.
Our BalloonSat weighs 801
grams.
15
6.
Team shall acquire (not necessarily
These rates shall be acquired
measure) ascent and descent rates of the from COSGC, which will have
22
“The Wright Stuff” 7
flight string.
appropriate measurement
devices placed on the balloon.
7.
Design shall allow for a HOBO H08004-02 (provided) 68x48x19 mm and
30 grams.
Yes
11
8.
Design shall allow for external
temperature cable (provided).
Yes
9
9.
Design shall allow for a Canon SD780
Camera IS 18x55x88mm and 130
grams (provided).
This design will accommodate
this camera.
11
10.
Design shall allow for an active heater
system weighing 100 grams with
batteries and id 10x50x50mm
(provided).
Yes
11
11.
BalloonSat shall be made of Foam Core
(provided).
Yes
9
12.
Parts list and budget shall include spare
parts.
Our budget adjusts for spare
parts.
15-17
13.
All BalloonSats shall have contact
information written on the outside
along with a US Flag (provided).
American flag and sticker info
included in weight.
14
14.
Proposal, design, and other
documentation units shall be in metric.
All dimension and weight
measurements are in metric.
All pages
15.
Launch is on November 6, 2011. Time Team will be present for launch
and location: 6:50 AM in Windsor, CO. and recovery.
Everyone is expected to show up for
launch. Only one team member is
required to participate on the recovery.
Launch and recovery should be
completed by 3:00 PM.
22
16.
No one shall get hurt.
18
17.
All hardware is the property of the
Included in budget, will be
Gateway to Space program and must be returned at end of semester.
returned in working order end of the
semester.
17, 22
18.
All parts shall be ordered and paid by
17
No one.
Most important parts will be
“The Wright Stuff” 8
Chris Koehler’s CU Visa by
appointment to minimize
reimbursement paperwork. All teams
shall keep detailed budgets on every
purchase and receipts shall be turned in
within 48 hours of purchase with team
name written on the receipt along with
a copy of the Gateway order form (HW
04).
ordered off Chris Koehler’s Visa
card. Colton Hall will keep all
receipts and budgets.
19.
All purchases made by team individuals
shall have receipts and must be
submitted within 60 days of purchase
or reimbursement will be subject to
income taxes.
All receipts and budgets will be
17
kept inside the budget folder,
which will be in the possession of
Colton Hall.
20.
Have fun and be creative.
Mind-blowing and incredible fun All pages
and creativity will be used.
21.
Absolutely nothing alive will be
permitted as payloads, with the
exception of yellow jackets,
mosquitoes, fire ants, earwigs, roaches,
or anything you would squish if you
found it in your bed.
Bacteria will be used for this
experiment, but nothing living
larger than that.
3
22.
Completion of final report.
The report will be completed.
23
23.
All BalloonSats shall have visual
indicators on the outside of the flight
structure to confirm at launch that the
payload is active and running.
Switches will be used as
indicators.
9
The BalloonSat shall consist of a rectangular prism of Foam Core (RFP requirement 11)
held together by hot glue and aluminum tape. The base shall be 25 cm by 15 cm, and the entire
BalloonSat shall be 14 cm tall. The BalloonSat shall consist of a lower deck (10 cm tall) and an
upper deck (4 cm tall), separated by a horizontal sheet of Foam Core. Kapton Insulation shall
cover the exterior and interior of the BalloonSat to prevent heat loss. A US Flag and stickers
detailing contact information shall be present on the side of the BalloonSat for retrieval purposes
(RFP requirement 13).
A hollow, plastic tube with a 5 mm diameter shall be placed along the central vertical
axis of the BalloonSat. The flight string shall be threaded through this tube, and a washer and
paper clip at each end shall secure the string and prevent it from sliding (RFP requirement 3).
“The Wright Stuff” 9
The lower deck of the BalloonSat shall contain a HOBO data logger to record the
temperature and humidity inside the BalloonSat, as well as outside the BalloonSat via an external
temperature cable (RFP requirements 7 and 8). A Canon SD780 Camera shall also be present on
the lower deck to take pictures out of a hole in the side of the BalloonSat (RFP requirement 9).
A heater system shall be glued to the roof of the lower deck, so as to keep the
temperature of the lower deck above -10°C and to provide heat via conduction to the servo motor
and one petri dish on the upper deck (RFP requirements 4 and 10). Wires shall connect three 9
volt batteries to the heater to provide power.
An Arduino circuit board shall be connected to a 9 volt battery via a power switch
accessible from the exterior of the BalloonSat. Flipping this switch shall indicate the Arduino
will be active during the flight (RFP requirement 23). Wires shall connect the Arduino to a servo
located on the upper deck. The Arduino shall be programmed to cause the servo to rotate at
specified times.
A servo motor shall sit on the upper deck, wired to the Arduino on the lower deck. A
servo arm attached to the servo shall connect to the sealed lid of a sterile petri dish sitting on the
upper deck. At a command from the Arduino, the rotation of the servo shall raise the lid of the
petri dish to collect bacteria samples. Another command shall lower the lid back into place.
To ensure the petri dish remains sealed and closed when the lid is down, a Foam Core
seal tension bar shall be glued to the top of the lid. A string attached to this bar shall pass through
holes in the Foam Core layer between the decks, and the string shall be attached to a vertical
extension spring on the lower deck. The spring shall be stretched slightly from its rest position so
that it exerts a downward force on the string as the spring attempts to compress back to its rest
state. The tension in the spring, then, shall transfer this force to the bar on top of the petri dish,
thus holding the lid down and maintaining a seal while the servo is not actively running.
Two more petri dishes, containing E. Coli bacteria, shall occupy the other half of the
upper deck. One petri dish shall be placed above the heater for warmth. This petri dish will also
be sealed with cold-weather electrical tape. The other petri dish shall be left unsealed and
unheated. Also, a third bacteria-filled petri dish, shall be placed on the lower deck and sealed
with electrical tape. All petri dishes shall be attached to the BalloonSat via hot glue.
The science experiment shall proceed as follows (RFP requirement 1): three petri dishes
shall contain E. Coli bacteria. The dish on the lower deck shall be heated, sealed, and protected
from UV radiation by the walls of the BalloonSat. One petri dish on the upper deck shall be
sealed and placed above the heater, so it shall only experience the effects of UV radiation. The
third dish shall be left cold, unsealed, and unprotected from UV radiation (this petri dish will be
insulated with foam core so that it is not heated along with the second dish). A fourth petri dish
shall be kept on the ground to act as a control group. These petri dishes shall allow for analysis
of the effects of UV radiation, low temperature, and low air pressure on bacteria. (Comparing the
dish on the lower deck to the control ground dish shall determine whether or not the bacteria
were affected simply by the trip of the BalloonSat, especially the acceleration, as the dish on the
lower deck shall be kept warm, sealed, and protected from radiation).
“The Wright Stuff” 10
Also, the sterile petri dish shall attempt to collect bacteria in the atmosphere. The servo
arm shall open the petri dish for collection, and then the Arduino board shall command the servo
to close the dish once data collection is complete. The spring shall keep the dish sealed when the
servo is not in use.
Design limitations include the effectiveness of the spring in holding the sterile petri dish
shut; it may be difficult for the spring to be strong enough to hold the lid down but weak enough
that the servo can overcome it while in operation. Also, the ability of the heater to heat the servo
and the petri dish on the upper deck may be limited, so this shall be tested thoroughly during the
cooler test. See the testing section for information on how the vacuum and cooler tests dealt with
these design limitations to create a functional BalloonSat.
Functional Block Diagram
Technical Drawings
“The Wright Stuff” 11
See section 5.0 Budget for a complete part list.
4.0 Management:
“The Wright Stuff” 12
Eli Nelson will act as the team leader, while Colton Hall will manage the budget. Each
task will be assigned to one primary person, with a secondary person also assigned as an
assistant. In terms of scheduling, general meetings are scheduled for Wednesdays and Saturdays,
and testing is scheduled to begin on October 15. A major time limitation will be completing
construction early enough for testing the BalloonSat. The time crunch usually resulted in the
tests being completed after their scheduled dates.
Name
Jobs
Description
Devin Bazata
Soldering, Assistant
Mechanical Engineer
Will be in charge of
assembling and testing the
actual electrical components,
as well as assist Eli with the
servo mechanism.
Eli Nelson
Mechanical Engineering,
Team Leader
Will be in charge of
designing, assembling, and
testing the servo mechanism.
Zak Collins
Life Sciences
Will be in charge of the
acquisition and cultivation of
our bacteria.
Colton Hall
Budget Manager; Assistant
for Construction,
Programming, and Life
Sciences
Will assist Brendan, David,
and Zak with their Building,
Programming, and Life
Science Jobs respectively.
Will also keep budget.
Brendan Lee
Construction
Will be in charge of
assembling the structure of
the spacecraft.
David Thomas
Programming
Will be in charge of
developing and testing the
code for the electrical
components, including
assisting Devin.
“The Wright Stuff” 13
Schedule:
Color code: Met on Time, Scheduled but Missed Deadline, Rescheduled Events, Future Events
09/27: Hardware Ordering (Time by Appointment)
09/28: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Possible Construction)
10/01: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Design Document and Critical Design Presentation)
10/04: Design Document Rev. A/B Due at 7:00 AM
10/04: Critical Design Presentation Due at 7:00 AM
10/05: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Construction)
10/08: Team Meeting (11:00 AM) (Construction)
10/12: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Construction)
10/15: Team Meeting (11:00 AM) (Freeze Test) (Construction) (Drop Test) (Begin Bacteria
Tests)
10/17: Team Meeting (Construction) (Whip Test)
10/18: Mid Semester Team Evaluation Due at 9:30 AM
10/19: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Construction) (Vacuum Test and Repeat All Other Tests
excepting Freeze Test)
10/23: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Redo any tests that need it) (Final Construction)
10/25: Pre-launch Inspection/Bring all hardware to class
10/26: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Begin Bacteria Tests) (Final Touch-ups)
10/27: In-class Mission Simulation Tests
10/30: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Final Touch-ups) (Work on LLR)
10/31: Team Meeting (Freeze Test) (Vacuum Test) (Work on LLR)
11/01: LLR Presentations Due at 7:00 AM
11/02: Team Meeting (3:30 PM) (Redo Freeze Test) (Final Touch-ups)
11/03: Team Meeting (Redo Vacuum Test) (Final Touch-Ups)
11/04: Team Meeting (Redo Freeze Test) (Final Touch-Ups) (Work on DD)
11/05: Final Balloon SAT Weigh-in and Turn In (Time by appointment)
11/05: Design Document Rev. C and LRR Card Due by 3:30 PM
11/06: LAUNCH DAY (4:45 AM - 4:00 PM)
11/06: Team Meeting (Upon Return) (Store Data from Launch)
11/08: Bring Raw Flight Data to Class
11/09: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Collect Data)
11/13: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Collect Data)
11/16: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Data/Prepare for Final Presentation)
11/27: Team Meeting (7:00 PM) (Prepare for Final Presentation)
11/29: Final Presentations Due at 7:00 AM/All Data Due in class
11/29: Final Presentation
11/30: Team Meeting (6:00 PM) (Finish Video and Design Document Rev. D)
12/03: ITLL Design Expo (9:00 AM - 4:00 PM)
12/03: Design Document Rev. D/Team Videos Due at Judging
12/06: Hardware Turn-in
5.0 Budget
Mass Budget
“The Wright Stuff” 14
Part
Mass
(g)
Quantity
Estimated Mass Actual Mass on
on BalloonSat
BalloonSat (g)
(g)
HOBO
26.9
1
26.9
25
HOBO Cable
9.2
1
9.2
5
Arduino
27.2
1
27.2
27.2
Heater
32.2
1
32.2
32.2
Switch
5.6
2
11.2
11.2
9v Battery
46.0
4
184.0
184.0
Canon SD780 IS Camera
130
1
130
111
US Flag Sticker
1.6
1
1.6
1.6
Name Stickers
0.3
3
1.2
1.2
Contact Info Stickers
0.4
1
0.4
0.4
Foam Core
220
3 sheets
220
125.0
Parallax Standard Servo
43
1
43
43
Servo Arm
6
1
6
6
Petri Dish with Agar
12
4
48
88.4
E-Coli Bacteria
N/A
N/A
Negligible
Negligible
Aluminum Tape
5
1
~5
~5
Kapton Foil
20
1
20
~10
Electrical Tape
5
1
~5
~5
Washer
12.4
2
24.8
24.8
Paper Clip
1
2
2
2
Hollow Plastic Tube
3.0
1
3.0
3.0
Hot Glue
5
~5 tubes
10.0
~10
Spring
2.1
1
2.1
2.1
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Plastic Bar
6.8
1
6.8
6.8
Rubber Stopper
55
1
55
55
849.6
801
Total Mass
Cost Budget
Item
Quanity Estimated Total
Purchased
Price($)
Price($) From
Contact Information
HOBO and
Accessories
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Arduino
1
40.00
33.51
SparkFun
customerservice@sparkfun.com
Heater
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Switch
2
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
9V Batteries
9
15.00
10.97
Home
303-449-4221
Depot/Space
Grant
Gutter Guard
1
5.00
2.23
Home Depot
303-449-4221
Medium
Cabinet Pull
1
*
3.48
Home Depot
303-449-4221
String
1
*
2.97
Home Depot
303-449-4221
Electrical
Tape
1
*
1.97
Home Depot
303-449-4221
Spring Pack
1
*
4.37
Home Depot
303-449-4221
25'
Polyethylene
Tube
1
*
2.82
Home Depot
303-449-4221
Home Depot
Tax
-
*
2.39
Home Depot
303-449-4221
AdaptaPlug
1
*
6.99
Radioshack
(303) 449-0635
9V Battery
Clips (5
pack)
1
*
2.99
Radioshack
(303) 449-0635
Radioshack
Tax
-
*
0.83
Radioshack
(303) 449-0635
“The Wright Stuff” 16
Connectors
8
*
8.23
JB Saunders (303) 442-1212
Canon
Camera
(SD780 IS)
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
US Flag
Sticker
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Name
Stickers
3
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Contact
Stickers
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Parallax
Standard
Servo
2
40.00
40.32
Parallax
(916) 624-8333
Servo Arm
2
20.00
18.97
Servo City
620-221-0123
Petri Dish
1
with Agar (20
pack) +
Shipping
20.00
13.33
Escapade
Direct
escapadedirect.com
Agar (10
gram bottle)
1
included
in petri
dish
estimate
8.99
Escapade
Direct
escapadedirect.com
Aluminum
Tape
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Kapton
Insulation
1
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Dry Ice
Cooler Test
1
1
13.73
King
Soopers
(303) 443-9622
Washers
2
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Paper Clip
2
N/A
0
Space Grant
Prof.Koehler@gmail.com
Bacteria
1
30
Science
Stuff
sciencestuff.com
Rubber
Cement
1
30.00
2.59
CU Book
Store
(303) 492-6411
Dry Ice
1
*
13.73
King
(303) 443-9622
“The Wright Stuff” 17
Cooler Test
2
Soopers
Solder
1
*
2.99
McGuckins
(303) 443-1822
Rubber
Stopper
1
**
3.99
McGuckins
(303) 443-1822
Tilt Valve
1
**
3.79
McGuckins
(303) 443-1822
Hair
Pin/Cotter
Pin
2
**
0.78
McGuckins
(303) 443-1822
Clevis Pin
2
**
1.38
McGuckins
(303) 443-1822
Dry Ice
Cooler Test
3
1
**
13.73
King
Soopers
(303) 443-9622
Total Budget
239.41
Budget
Remaining
10.59
*Indicates a minor, inexpensive item that was classified under miscellaneous in the initial budget
estimate.
**Indicates a part that was not initially not part of design but was added after testing necessitated
a design change.
Parts ordered online will be ordered by appointment with Chris Koehler using his Visa. Colton
Hall will manage the costs of these parts and will be in charge of the order forms. All receipts for
parts not ordered online will be turned in by Colton Hall to Chris Koehler within 60 days of
purchase for reimbursement. All hardware is the property of the Gateway to Space program and
will be returned at the end of the semester.
6.0 Test Plan:
Team Safety
The safety of each team member is very important, and precautions will be taken to
ensure harm does not happen upon anyone. For example, multiple team members will be present
for every building and testing session. If one person gets injured, then another team member can
step in to help. During the drop and staircase tests, the satellite will impact the ground with
considerable force and parts may break and fly off. To ensure safety from these projectiles, each
team member will come no closer than 3 meters from the landing area at the time of landing. The
dry ice used for the freeze tests is very cold and can freeze skin, so a proper cooler will be used
“The Wright Stuff” 18
and proper gloves will be worn when handling it. Finally, each team member will use proper
judgement and common sense to stay out of harm’s way, and each team member will look out
for each other.
● All safety procedures were followed, and all team members remain uninjured.
Testing
A series of tests will be performed on the BalloonSat to test its performance and to ensure that it
will not fail in a space environment. These include drop tests, whip tests, freeze tests, bacteria
test, staircase tests, and vacuum tests (performed in the vacuum chamber of the Center for
Astrophysics and Space Astronomy). The purpose of these tests is to measure how well the
BalloonSat and its components will hold up to the conditions it will face during its flight.
Drop Test: There will be two drop tests to measure the durability of the petri dishes, as well as
that of the whole BalloonSat. The first test will consist of dropping the BalloonSat from a raised
platform, such as the second story bridge between the DLC and the ITLL. To preserve the actual
components of the satellite and to keep costs down, rocks of equal mass to the various
components will be used in their place to simulate the actual weight and weight distribution. The
purpose of this test is to investigate the durability of the satellite as it drops back down to Earth.
A separate drop test will be administered on the petri dishes. Their durability is our biggest
concern, as any breach can contaminate the bacteria and skew the results of the experiment. The
dishes will be dropped from the same height as the BalloonSat.
● Results: There were a few nicks on the corners on the structure of the BalloonSat, but
overall there was minimal damage. However, after three drops, the servo came loose. The
petri dishes sustained minimal damage as well.
● Changes made: We initially attached the servo by gluing it to a stack of Foam Core which
was attached to the BalloonSat, and wrapping a piece of tape around it. To improve on
this, we simply added more glue and more tape to attach the servo more securely. No
modifications were made to the petri dishes.
Staircase Test: The satellite will tumble many times after
that initial landing impact, and then its durability under
this situation will need to be measured. The staircase test
will measure this, and will be performed by tumbling the
satellite down a flight of stairs. The difference between
this test and the drop test is that it will test the durability
of the BalloonSat over a series of smaller but more
numerous impacts.
● Results: The BalloonSat structure sustained
minimal damage, with only a few nicks on the
corners.
● Changes made: The same changes were made as for the drop test.
“The Wright Stuff” 19
Whip Test: Whip tests will consist of threading a string through the box (through the same hole
that the BalloonSat will be attached to the balloon string with) and twirling it around in a circular
motion by hand. This will show how well the opening for the cord attaching the satellite to the
balloon will fare under the forces of wind, upward acceleration at launch, and downward
acceleration at burst.
● Results: The whip test was conducted after modifications were made for the drop and
staircase tests, so the structure was strong and did not sustain any damage.
● Changes made: Because no damage was sustained, no changes were made.
Bacteria Test: Bacteria tests are crucial for ensuring the validity of our results. The bacteria tests
were to ensure that we could incubate the bacteria and have them grow. We made agar, put it in
petri dishes, put the bacteria on the agar and then incubated them in the BioServe lab at 26
degrees Celcius. Every couple days we checked on the petri dishes for growth. Another purpose
of this test was to see how long it would take to incubate and what sort of growth we could
expect. A control growth of bacteria will be conducted on the ground and this data will be
compared to our final BalloonSat information. The bacteria will be placed on a petri dish and
placed in the same environment where we will incubate the launched bacteria.
● Results: The bacteria test did not go as planned. There was no visible growth on any of
the petri dishes long after there should have been. We think that the reason for this is that
the agar is incompatible with our bacteria or that there was some mistake made in making
the agar.
● Changes made: Instead of sending up bacteria that we have grown ourselves we will be
sending up the bacteria that we bought online. This should not affect our experiment
significantly since we will still be able to tell if the bacteria survived or not after we have
prepared the agar correctly.
Freeze Test: Freeze tests will be administered to the vital components and subsystems of the
satellite to show how well they will work in a cold environment. The subsystems will be
immersed in dry ice to simulate this. Of particular interest is the performance of the servo motors
and the camera in this environment. Condensation may be a problem for the camera lens at high
altitude, so this test is important. The servo motors may cease to perform or perform less
smoothly in the cold, so the testing of its performance in a near-space environment is vital as
well.
● Results: We performed the cold test three times, as the first two times the temperature did
not go low enough. However, on the third try, we were able to achieve an external
temperature of around -70 degrees Celsius. The internal temperature dropped to around 50 degrees Celsius, but the heater was working because the rate of change in temperature
was slower than that of the external temperature. The heater worked at first, but it failed
towards the end of the test because fresh batteries had not installed, so the batteries died.
However, the camera and servo worked perfectly in the cold environment.
● Changes made: To keep the internal temperature warmer, we added additional insulation
in the form of extra kapton foil on the inside of the BalloonSat. Fresh batteries will also
be installed at launch to ensure that the heater works.
“The Wright Stuff” 20
Vacuum Test: We will be testing our Petri dishes in a vacuum chamber. The durability of the
seals on Petri dishes used to hold the bacteria will be the primary interest. This is important
because a failure of the seals on the vacuum-controlled sample dishes would skew the results in
the same way as a breach would. To do this we will use the Bell Jar at The Center for
Astrophysics and Space Astronomy. We will pump down the Bell Jar to as low a pressure as it
goes and hold it at that pressure, with the Petri dishes inside, for ten minutes. To test if our Petri
dishes held a seal we will add 10 mL of water to them before the test and measure water loss to
see if the Petri dishes hold pressure. The reason this works is because at a low pressure water
evaporates, so if we hold our Petri dishes at very low pressure and they hold a seal, then the
water will not evaporate, but if it doesn't have a seal the water will evaporate.
“The Wright Stuff” 21
● Results: Our plans for the Petri dishes that stay
sealed for the entire flight worked as expected in the
vacuum test. We started with 10 mL of water and
ended with 9.5 mL of water. However, our initial
design for the Petri dish going to be used to capture
the bacteria in the tropopause did not hold pressure,
as we started with 10 mL of water and ended with 0
mL of water. After redesigning our capture Petri
dish, we retested it and it held perfectly, starting
with 10 mL of water and ending with 10 mL of
water.
What was tested
Initial volume
of water
Final volume
of water
Permanently sealed
Petri Dish
10 mL
9.5 mL
Initial re-sealable
Petri Dish
10 mL
0 mL
Final (redesigned)
re-sealable Petri
Dish
10 mL
10 mL
● Changes Made: Due to a successful first test, we did not change the design of our Petri
dish seals that will stay sealed throughout the flight, but we did a redesign of the Petri
dish that captures the bacteria. We changed our design to use a rubber seal that uses
pressure differentials to create a seal on the Petri dish. This design has the capability to
unseal and seal in flight and holds a air-tight seal at vacuum.
7.0 Expected Results:
We expect to find out that the exposure to the near space environment will kill both the
bacteria exposed to all three elements as well as the bacteria exposed to just UV. In particular,
we think that exposure to the UV radiation will be the specific cause for their demise because we
know that UV radiation is often used to disinfect things by killing bacteria. We have had practice
incubating and making agar but we have not successfully grown bacteria yet. Despite this we are
confident that we will be able to grow bacteria after launch. Our bacteria can be stored for a very
long time which will allow us to figure out how to grow the bacteria. As for the bacteria
collection experiment, we expect to collect some bacteria from the tropopause, as previous
researchers have found bacteria in other parts of the upper atmosphere. We hope our data will
give us insights into the survival capabilities of bacteria in both their natural environments and
their survival in more extreme environments. To test if our experiment will go as planned, we
will test our servo mechanism using the cooler test to see if it will work properly so that we
“The Wright Stuff” 22
know our petri dish will be deployed correctly. We will also be testing our petri dishes to see if
they will hold under the extremely low pressure of near space so that we can be sure they will
not be contaminated, which would ruin our data.
8.0 Launch and Recovery
All team members will be present at launch on Sunday, November 6, 2011, at 6:50 AM
in Windsor, Colorado. Eli Nelson shall be responsible for launching the BalloonSat, while other
team members will provide support and ensure that the BalloonSat is functioning correctly.
Colton Hall will be responsible for recovering the BalloonSat and will drive the rest of the team
in the vehicle caravan.
Once our balloon satellite has been recovered, we must examine the petri dishes to ensure
the seals have not been broken by inspecting them visually and that the results have not been
compromised in any immediately observable way. We will then remove the petri dishes from the
balloon satellite and incubate the resulting captured sample for the required amount of time. We
will observe the bacteria that were previously incubated prior to being sent up and subjected to
the high altitude environment. The petri dish exposed only to UV, the fully exposed petri dish,
and the control dish will all be evaluated to determine the levels of bacteria in each dish, and this
information will be used to evaluate the effect of high altitude environments on the life and
reproduction of the bacteria by comparing it to a sample dish that will be incubated and kept at
ground level. The petri dishes will be photographed every few days to document growth. If the
bacteria continues to grow after being sent up then we will conclude that it survived the flight.
On the other hand if it does not grow more after flight then we can conclude that the bacteria was
killed. The dish that is used to attempt to capture bacteria in the upper atmosphere will be
observed after given the necessary time to incubate, and we will then conclude whether or not
our apparatus was able to gather any variety of microrganism in our experiment. Analysis will be
supplemented by environmental data collected by the HOBO, pictures taken by the camera, and
data on the ascent and descent of the balloon provided by COSGC instruments on the balloon.
All bacteria, agar, and petri dishes used in our experiment will be disposed of in the biohazardous waste bin located in the BioServe laboratory.
Following the analysis of the results of the flight of our balloon satellite, we will prepare
it in such a way that it is ready to fly another mission. The first step is to inspect the structural
integrity of the satellite and determine whether any major components have been damaged in the
flight and whether or not they need replacement. This primarily includes the Foam Core
structure. We will then confirm that all the electronic components, such as the camera, Arduino
Uno, HOBO, and servo, are all in satisfactory operating condition, and repair them if they are
not. We can then replace the petri dishes and our satellite will be ready to fly another mission
and obtain further results if need be (RFP requirement 2). At this time, a final report will be
compiled, including experimental results and analysis of the BalloonSat’s performance and flight
(RFP requirement 22).