Balloon Line Autonomous Instrument Using Nichrome Wire and Electricity

Clifford Hall, Room 210

High altitude ballooning serves as a platform for scientists and engineers to experiment at extreme altitudes in the near-space environment. However, an operations challenge arises in being able to recover flown payloads in satisfactory locations. Having a simple system onboard to terminate the flight based on desirable latitude, longitude, or altitude data could ameliorate this issue. Nichrome wire, an alloy comprised of Nickel and Chromium metal, could be used as a resistance-heating blade to cut the line connecting the balloon to the payload train. A subsystem level design and its preliminary test results are presented here. To develop its technological readiness level, a test readiness plan is also evaluated to ensure its functional requirement milestones will be achieved.