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Air at 30,000 ft is -50 F. You need, even for a very small box, heating measured in watts to keep your electronics at a temperature where they'll function. Ev
by colechristensen 4y ago
Air at 30,000 ft is -50 F. You need, even for a very small box, heating measured in watts to keep your electronics at a temperature where they'll function. Even if you didn't, even tiny amounts of heating are going to be visible. The electronics box will look like a lighthouse beacon in IR.
Source: have launched small electronics to 100,000 ft on a weather balloon.
- myself248 4y agoThis balloon did not have a heater. From TFA: > These floater balloons often use only solar panels, no batteries. Batteries were dropped from the projects early on because they have limited charging cycles before they stop accepting a charge, especially in the harsh temps at altitude, -40F/-40C or worse. When the battery stops accepting a charge, it ends telemetry from the mission. So they only report telemetry during daylight, when the sun is at a high enough angle to illuminate the tiny solar panels. In the Arctic winter, the days are short and the sun might not get high enough to wake up the electronics.