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News Archive
December 27, 2006:
The SBI instrument was launched on December 24 at 3:55 UT from Willie
Field (Antarctica).
The launch went flawlessly and after a perfect release SBI started to
quickly gain altitude.
Approximately 3 hours into the flight, when the payload was at 24000
meters (about 79000 feet) altitude we had a major malfunction of the
control computer which for reasons still to be determined shut down abruptly.
The control computer is responsible to command the telescope pointing
system. Without that
computer it was impossible to take images of the Sun.
We still had good communications to the gondola via the command computer
that was still alive and well.
After two hours of unsuccessful attempts to bring the control computer back
online we decided to order a premature termination of the mission.
Approximately 5 hours after launch the SBI gondola was cut away from the
balloon. After 45 minutes of decent with a parachute the gondola safely
landed on the Ross Ice Shelf about 34 kilometers (55 miles) away from the
launch site.
On December 26 Bliss Carkhuff took off from Willie Field on a Twin Otter,
a twin engine turboprop aircraft, and flew to the landing site. Because
of the bad lighting conditions it was impossible to land, but Bliss was
able to see the gondola from the air and took a few pictures of it.
The SBI gondola after touch down tipped over on its back (as we expected)
but looks in good condition.
As soon as the weather allows Bliss will fly back to the landing site and
will start the recovery of the pressurized vessels, the telescope, and
other small components.
The gondola frame will be recovered later with an helicopter.
By December 5 we finished the assembly of the gondola and we started to
test all SBI systems. Since then,
during days of good weather with low winds, we had several pointing tests
sessions to check the instrument pointing and imaging performance and to
conduct calibrations.
On December 17 we had our compatibility test with CSBF's balloon control
and communications systems, the so called hang test.
The hang test involves hanging
from the launch vehicle (called
The Boss) in full flight configuration and checking all the
electronic links between SBI and CSBF electronics.
Everything went smoothly, no problems arose.
The SBI Instrument is now flight ready and we are on standby for
launch. Before we can launch we need to wait until another payload
(BLAST) is launched, which hopefully will happen soon, when the weather
conditions on the ground will permit it.
The first payload of this season (ANITA) was launched on Friday December 15,
2006. Its trajectory can be followed from the
CSBF Antarctica operations web site.
November 17, 2006:
The entire Antarctic team, with the exception of Peter Foukal, has arrived at the
McMurdo station in Antarctica.
The work to reassemble the gondola and Williams Field is well underway and we are still on
schedule to be flight ready by the 10th of December.
Within the next couple of days we will start, weather permitting, the
fine tuning and calibration of the optical system by hanging the gondola
outside the integration building and pointing at the Sun.
On August 2, 2006 we had the hang test, during which all systems interfacing SBI-2
to the SIP are thoroughly tested. The tests went smoothly and the payload
was cleared for flight. Here is a picture
of SBI hanging from CSBF's launch vehicle Tiny Tim
The payload and all the our support equipment was packed on August 4, 2006
and was subsequently transferred by truck to
Port Hueneme (California).
There it was put on board a cargo ship which left the USA on August 28,
2006 on its way to Christchurch
(New Zealand). At the end of October SBI will
be flown to McMurdo (Antarctica) on board a C141 from the US National Guard.
The first contingent of our Antarctic team: Bliss
Carkhuff and Matt Noble are scheduled to arrive in McMurdo on
November 7, 2006. Nathan Rolander will join them shortly thereafter on
November 10, and Pietro Bernasconi will be on the ice on November 17. Finally
Peter Foukal will arrive on December 1, 2006.
December, 2004:
We have received funding from NASA to re-fly SBI on a long duration
balloon mission (LDB).
This will be a longer flight than the September 2003 one. The desired
flight duration is about ten days, but our minimum requirements are for at
least 4 to 5 days at a float altitude above 100 kft.
We plan to launch the new mission from Antarctica in the
2006/2007 summer antarctic season. In the case that for some reasons we
miss that launch opportunity, as backup plan, we could launch in the late
spring of 2007 from Kiruna (Sweden).
