Author: Administrator

We’ve begun testing the upper deck balloon interface. This system will be used by Ascenders and Dark Sky Stations.It does two things: It allows multiple easy interfaces to the inner lifting cells (this was a huge problem on Ascender 175) and it allows us to use inexpensive flat plastic film instead of outrageously expensive thin film shaped balloons. The test cell/balloon was half scale for both the next Ascender and the next DSS. Yesterday the team began building a full scale cell to test.

This is the moment of balloon failure.

From last October’s flight.

We’re posted a photo album of all the PongSats ready for lift off at the PongSat facebook site:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/PongSat/250288635034145

We’ve started breaking down all six vehicles and getting all the PongSats, MiniCubes, cameras, cards and equipment sorted and put away. It’s going well but it will take a few more days to find the floor again.

Six flights, Six recoveries.

It will take a couple of days to get everything sorted and  backed up. Until then here’s a screen shot from Away 70.