Twelve students and three faculty members traveled to Indiana for the eclipse on April 8 and participated in the team’s final balloon launch.
The launch was part of NASA’s Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project (NEBP).
This project is partially funded by NASA. Its purpose is to allow students to participate in inclusive STEM educational opportunities and increase their understanding of science.
“The way each of these occurs is through eclipse ballooning, meaning we allow weather balloons to carry scientific sensors to high altitudes during a solar eclipse,” said senior launch director Hugh Flanagan.
When the balloons are recovered, data is collected from the sensors and then analyzed to find out what changes take place in the atmosphere during an eclipse.
The group also launched balloons in New Mexico during the annular eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023.
“Gathering atmospheric data is super interesting, but flying during the eclipse adds another layer,” said assistant launch director Nicole Himes.
“Some NEBP teams were able to capture footage of the eclipse and other atmospheric data, including gravity waves.”
Himes has participated in seven launches during her college career.
The team’s April 8 launch got off to a good start, but ultimately proved unsuccessful. Due to high winds, the balloon was not able to reach the height that was expected.
“Winds are always a possible complication during a balloon launch, said Flanagan. “We usually would have called off the launch due to the strong winds, but a solar eclipse is not an event we can reschedule.
“The team did everything correctly, and we are proud to say we successfully launched in such high-stress conditions.”
Winds reached speeds of 23 mph at the team’s site in Indiana and added a layer of complexity to launch procedures. A helium leak was discovered and patched, but it failed to hold due to the wind.
The SFU team’s balloon reached 6,000 feet, one-tenth of the height that was expected.
“I am proud to see where we are now, especially knowing where we started,” said Flanagan, who will graduate next month. “I have been privileged to have attended every one of these launches.
“I hope that SFU will continue to take advantage of the plethora of engineering projects presented by scientific ballooning.”
The students who participated in the April launch included Flanagan, Himes, Lydia Anderson, Seraphina Callaghan, Nathan Cammarata, Lauren Farabaugh, Stephen McGinnis, Abby Meehan, Kevin Salmon, Belle Stover, Austin Wheeler and Meagan Wheeler.
Olivia Baldini, Jacob Jolly and Isabel Lumley could not make the trip to Indiana, but still contributed to the project.
Faculty members who made the trip included Associate Professor of Engineering Qin He, Engineering Laboratory Instructor Br. Marius Strom and Professor of Environmental Engineering Rachel Wagner.
