Balloon-Based Mars Observation Mission - Abstractfull text
Balloon-Based Mars Observation Mission
Ryan Coles
John Thomas Calfee
Roberto Hernandez
Absera Stephensen
Isaac Varner
Texas Christian University
9 December 1998
Abstract
The primary goal of this project is to take panoramic photographs of the Martian landscape. To accomplish this goal, a simple balloon and gondola design was adopted. The balloon itself will be lighter than air and will carry a light instrumentation payload. Constraints placed in the design of this craft include the following:
It will be a stand-alone mission.
It will have no guidance system‹windblown design.
It will maintain a mean altitude of 7 km.
It will have an expected lifetime of one month.
It will be a "low-cost" mission.
The mission itself will consist of several balloon crafts that will be dispersed throughout the atmosphere before entry.
Important considerations in the design of the Mars Balloon Project include:
Instrumentation and communications packages.
The balloon material, its lighter-than-air gas, and buoyancy.
Camera type.
Power subsystems.
Atmospheric conditions.
Launch platform.
At this stage in the project, many things have not been finalized. This report summarizes the preliminary analysis of the proposed solution for the Balloon-Based Mars Observation Mission.
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Last Modified: February 25, 1999
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