Mission Control: Washington University in St. Louis
Learn about the Solo Spirit flight, the balloon, the people involved, the science experiment, and what it’s like to live in a balloon!
The Goal ·
The Participants ·
The Balloon ·
The Flight Path ·
Mission Operations
The Aerobot Science Payload ·
Life In The Balloon ·
The Competition
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Visit the web site for the January 1998 Solo Spirit flight
Steve Fossett's goal is to become the first person to make a continuous trip around the world in a balloon. With the help of his Mission Team he will make his fourth attempt this summer, flying a combination helium/hot air balloon named Solo Spirit.
In addition to the navigational challenge, the Solo Spirit Mission will provide the opportunity to obtain information about a relatively unknown portion of the atmosphere over a short period of time. A team of professors and students at Washington University, sponsored by the NASA/Missouri Space Grant Consortium, will take advantage of Fossett's flight by examining data recorded by an Aerobot Science Payload attached to the balloon. The Payload is on loan from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where it is part of a program to develop robotic balloons to fly in the atmosphere of Mars or Venus. The data gathered by the Payload will serve as an educational tool to teach the public about the geography, climate and environmental sustainability of the Earth.
The Ballooning Commission of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale sets the rules for the around-the-world competition. As additional incentive, Anheuser-Busch is sponsoring the Budweiser Cup, a $1 million award to the first balloonist to achieve the around-the-world record by December 31, 1999. Half of the prize is to be given to a nonprofit organization of the winner's choice. Steve Fossett has designated Washington University as the organization with whom he will share the award if he wins it.
Although Solo Spirit is indeed a solo flight, the pilot depends on many people on the ground to make the mission run safely and smoothly. Click on the highlighted names below to learn more about each participant.
Steve Fossett, the pilot, is a Chicago businessman with a long list of adventures and world records to his credit, including several in ballooning.
The Launch Team in Mendoza, Argentina, is headed by Launch Director Dennis Brown. Chief Engineer Tim Cole is responsible for operational readiness of all Solo Spirit systems. Engineering assistance is provided by Bruce Comstock, Richard Gardner, Rich Axelbaum, and Michael Pauken. Handling operations in Argentina are Daniel Alessio, Erick Nevels, José (Pépé) Danza, and Sergio Calderón. Francisco Fernandez is the Administrative Liaison, and Albert "Bert" Padelt is the Systems Manager. Robert Ivlev, visiting scientist from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is responsible for installing the Aerobot Science Payload on Solo Spirit. Rana Graham is responsible for programming the computers aboard Solo Spirit.
The Inflation Team includes Ed Heltshe, John Kugler, John Lippert, Bob Ross, and Ralph "Red" Sheese.
The Solo Spirit Balloon was designed and built by Donald Cameron, Cameron Balloons, Ltd., at its factory in Bristol, England, with assistance from Ilene Davies, Liz Davies, Roger Day, Jackie Hibberd, and Louise Mundy. The Test Team includes Miles Minch, Janice Moore, and Mark Purdy.
Mission Control for Solo Spirit, located at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, is responsible for maintaining communication with the balloon, mapping flight paths, and tracking the balloon's progress. The Mission Control Director is Alan Blount. Chief Meteorologist Bob Rice will provide meteorological support throughout the flight, with assistance from George Dunnavan. Joe Ritchie, Recovery Director, will coordinate recovery of the Solo Spirit balloon and equipment after the flight. Additional members of Mission Control are Jim Mitchell, Doug Blount, Marie Metzer Finkelman, and Jennie Ritchie.
The Science Team, directed by Raymond Arvidson, Science Coordinator, will be responsible for science data returned by the Aerobot Science Payload. Edward Guinness, Senior Research Scientist, and Thomas Stein, Computer Systems Coordinator, lead a team of high school and undergraduate students to manage the Science Payload daily operations. Margo Long provides administrative support.
The Washington University Public Affairs Office, under the direction of Judith Jasper, manages all communications with the media regarding Solo Spirit. Public Affairs team members include Fred Volkmann, Sue Killenberg, Betsy Rogers, Gerry Everding, Ann Nicholson, Colleen Devereux, Jim Dryden, Jim Burmeister, Steve Kraushaar, and Nancy Belt.
The Solo Spirit Web Site is maintained by Susan Slavney with help from Colleen Devereux, Anna Mracek, Stephanie Nelson, Judd Bowman, and Gail Wright.
Physical facilities for Mission Control are maintained by Bill Wiley, Tom Flaker, and Rob Jacknewitz.
The Solo Spirit balloon uses a combination of helium and hot air to fly, a design known as a Roziˆre balloon. The balloon envelope is 150 feet tall and 80 feet wide. It contains 450,000 cubic feet of helium plus 100,000 cubic feet of hot air. It was designed and built by Cameron Balloons Ltd, Bristol, England. It contains no engine; the balloon is powered solely by the wind. Forty tanks of fuel, a mixture of propane and ethane, hang from the outside of the capsule. This fuel is burned to heat the air in the balloon to cause it to rise. The pilot steers the balloon by ascending or descending to catch winds blowing in the desired direction. The balloon carries the Comstock Autopilot, which can maintain the balloon at a constant altitude by using a computer to control the burners. This allows the pilot to get some sleep!
Cameron Balloons also built the gondola, an unpressurized capsule 7' long, 4' 6" wide, and 4' high. It is a lightweight composite of Kevlar and carbon, fitted with a plastic bubble hatch on top. Lithium batteries power the electronic components inside the capsule. A pair of heaters keep the capsule interior temperature between 40 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit.
A Global Positioning System (GPS) relies on satellites to determine the balloon's precise latitude and longitude for navigation. The INMARSAT C satellite communication system is the primary means of communication between Solo Spirit and Mission Control, with the INMARSAT M satellite telephone as a backup. High-frequency (HF) radio is used for communication with Air Traffic Control over the Atlantic Ocean. Very-high-frequency (VHF) radio provides air-to-air and air-to-ground communication up to 150 miles. The Solo Spirit Mission Team is not giving out the radio frequencies used. Finally, the balloon is equipped with an Emergency Position Identifier Rescue Beacon (EPIRB) which can be activated to initiate an international search and rescue.
The balloon will be launched from Mendoza, Argentina in late July or early August, 1998. The exact flight trajectory of Solo Spirit has yet to be determined. Weather permitting, Fossett will launch from Argentina and then fly over Brazil. Next he will cross over the Atlantic Ocean, travel across Africa, the Indian Ocean, and Australia. The final stretch will be over the Pacific Ocean. To succeed, he must land back in South America at a longitude equal to or farther east than where he began his journey.
While Solo Spirit is in the air, its welfare is the joint responsibility of pilot Steve Fossett and his team at Mission Control in St. Louis. Mission Control is staffed around the clock by experienced balloonists and meteorologists who communicate with Fossett mainly via satellite electronic mail. The balloon's location is carefully mapped; weather systems are monitored using the latest available satellite data; flight path alternatives are continually evaluated.
Attached to the Solo Spirit gondola is the Aerobot Science Payload, on loan from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, where it is part of the NASA Planetary Aerobot Program. The Payload is a prototype of a set of instruments that NASA may eventually fly in the atmosphere of Mars or Venus on a robotic balloon called an aerobot. The Payload instruments measure position, temperature, pressure, vertical wind velocity, and sky radiance continually during the flight. Once each hour, the Payload downloads its accumulated data via satellite phone. Read more about the Aerobot Science Payload, and see the latest data, on the Science Data pages of this web site.
While in the air, Fossett has to make adjustments in order to live within the limited space of the balloon gondola. In the unpressurized environment, he breathes from liquid oxygen cylinders much of the time. The gondola is equipped with a bench and sleeping bag; however, he averages only two hours of sleep each night. His meals consist of military-style Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) and water. The only exercise he gets while in flight is from changing fuel cells or other manual tasks. A bucket and a bottle substitute for restroom facilities aboard Solo Spirit.
A number of other teams are in the race to be the first to circle the globe in a balloon, although none of them will be flying at the same time as Fossett. They are planning to fly sometime during the winter months of 1998-99. Some of these teams are:
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This page was last updated
July 14, 1998 18:10 UTC |