AME Seniors Send Balloons Around Earth in 13 Days

Mechanical engineering senior Josh Crest and aerospace engineering senior Michael Debbins successfully sent three small balloons around the world on a voyage that took only 13 days. The pico-balloons were launched from the University of Arizona's Highland Parking Garage on April 2, and traveled more than 30,000 km before arriving back in Arizona on April 15. 

“It was really exciting,” Crest said in an interview with the Arizona Daily Star. “One of our goals is to try to stay up as long as possible and collect as much data as possible.”

AME professor Jekan Thanga told the Star that the techniques and technologies the team is testing could one day provide a low-cost alternative to space-based satellites. Such balloons also could be used to gather real-time data about jet streams, which sent the balloons an average of 40,000 feet high at speeds of more than 100 mph.

Each balloon carried a small circuit board and a long wire antenna to collect flight and weather data. Altogether, the package weighed less than a golf ball.