BARREL Status Report #10 August 14, 2016

BARREL Status Report #10

August 14, 2016

I’m happy to report that BARREL Flight 4A was a success! The balloon and payload both performed well. The flight was terminated at 0540 UT because it was moving west towards lakes and mountains. It was a short flight, but longer than we expected. Most importantly, we caught the conjunction with RBSP-A that we were targeting, and we saw a precipitation event that lasted almost two hours.  A preliminary look suggests that this was bursty, most likely microburst precipitation. We’ll need to look at the data more carefully, but this looks very promising. The payload is now on the ground at 67.72N, 18.88E, and recovery prospects look good. 

I think the team will be resting for most of the day today. We expect the next launch attempt to be on Tuesday. I will send another update when we get a better look at the surface weather.

Robyn

From Arlo 

We have recovered the payload from flight 4A! There was some light damage to the box and handles, but the payload seems intact upon initial inspection. The flight was about 5 hours at float, and recovery was smooth in an easy to reach, relatively dry area.