Launch Tips

The more cell phone carriers used, the better. Cell phone coverage in remote locations can be unreliable, and varies widely between carriers. If several carriers are used by the team, the likelihood of having a working cell phone is increased. Internet is a valuable resource. Having a Smartphone has saved us on more than one occasion. On a related note, be sure to fully charge cell phones before driving to the launch site.

Be familiar with your GPS equipment. Know how to use your handheld GPS to save waypoints and plot a course to saved waypoints. Save your ground station location as a waypoint, and in the event that you must traverse terrain on foot to recover the balloon, save your vehicle location as a waypoint as well. This will aid you when you need to return to your vehicle. Also, know how to read the latitude/longitude data, and change the units if necessary. Do not rely on any single system for navigation: always have a backup available, and make sure someone not on the chase team knows what direction you are heading.

Know where restricted and hazardous areas are: Do not launch near restricted airspace, and check wind conditions to make sure the balloon will not drift into any restricted airspace. When running launch simulations, choose a launch site which minimizes the chance that the balloon will land in restricted or hazardous areas. If adequate safety margins cannot be assured, postpone the launch to a later date. Never traverse through hazardous terrain: it is better to loose equipment than to risk team safety, especially in remote areas.

Be sure your heaters will function in a low pressure environment: The hand heaters generally used for keeping hands warm during winter activities are very useful for warming payload boxes. However, many of the hand heaters available at sporting goods stores require the presence of air to sustain the chemical reactions which produce heat. In the near-space environment, these heaters will not have enough air available to generate heat. Be sure to purchase chemical hand heaters which can function in the absence of air.