Dhruv Patel 12th- Project managerMax Beasley 11th- Systems EngineerTrey Hargett 11th Jonathan Ford 11thBrent Higdon 11thAustin Lambert 11thJay Chenault 11thDavid Martin 11thHayden Naumann 11thTrey Keown 10th

Our task is to design and build a prototype experiment that could be performed on Mars during the Mars Sample Return Mission.

• The experiment must fit into an 18 inch cube• The experiment must weigh less than 10 kilograms• The experiment is allocated 50 watts of energy from

the Lander• The experiment must be completed during the

duration of the mission

• Record and collect atmospheric data at various levels of the Martian atmosphere– Measure Atmospheric temperature, pressure, wind

speed, radiation, magnetic force, and humidity• Secondary objective is to take a photo of the Mars

Sample Return Lander from above

1. Pressure

2. Temperature

3. Radiation

4. Density (UV Sensor)

5. Altitude

6. Visual Images

7. Humidity

8. Wind speed

9. Magnetic Field

Beagle 2 Capacitance Manometer

Weight – 15g

Beagle 2 Instrument

Weight – 6g

Credit: Beagle 2 Credit: Beagle 2

UVB, UVC

Weight – 19g

Density is going to be measured by using data from

other measurements

Credit: Beagle 2

GP1L Acceleromter

RC Mini Cam

Hygrometer

More research is needed on hygrometers to determine an appropriate instrument for this mission.

Hot film anemometer

Weight – 4g

Honeywell HMC2003

(Most important to least important)

•Measurement Uncertainty

•Complexity of Concept of Operations (ConOps)

•Overall Measurement Space

•Measurement Duration

•Number of measurement data points inside specified measurement density

•Mass reserve

FOM Balloon Glider

Measurement uncertainty 80 50Complexity of ConOps 56 49Overall measurement space 40 35Measurement duration 20 40Measurement Density 21 9Mass Reserve 3 2Total 219 185

Martian Balloon

•The Martian Balloon idea consists of balloon that floats up into the Martian atmosphere and carries a payload of various scientific instruments that measures atmospheric data. •Due to the low atmospheric density of mars, a very large balloon is required to displace enough air to create a buoyant force large enough to allow the balloon to rise. •The Density of the Martian atmosphere based upon previous experiments was found to be around .02 kg/m3

•According to Archimedes's principle, our balloon, the payload, and the helium inside of the balloon would have to weigh less than the Martian atmosphere in order to float.

Diameter of Balloon (m)

Volume of Balloon (m3)

Mass of displaced atmosphere (kg)

Mass of displaced atmosphere (lbs)

6 m 113.10 m3 2.26 kg 5.0 lbs

7 m 179.59 m 3 3.59 kg 7.9 lbs

8m 268.08 m3 5.36 kg 11.8 lbs

9 m 381.7 m3 7.63 kg 16.8 lbs

10 m 523.6 m 3 10.472 kg 23.0 lbs

1. Energy Storage2. Balloon Deployment3. Data Measurement, Storage, and

Transmission

• Balloon Thickness- 5x10-5 m

• Balloon deflated Volume- .0323 m3

• Balloon Material- Mylar, Kevlar, Polyethylene, and Adhesive

• Balloon inflated Volume- 381.7

• Inflated Balloon Mass- 6.3 Kg

• Payload Mass- 1Kg

• Platform dimensions- 14”x14”x.0625”

• Platform Material- Titanium

• All scientific instruments are mounted on the platform

• Two computers: the Lander System (LASY) and the Balloon System (BOSS)

• Unsure of how much we’ll be able to use the Lander’s computer, so LASY was included. Controls lifting mechanism and possibly communications with BOSS.

• BOSS must be as lightweight as possible. The weight of the entire computer system (motherboard, processor, flash memory) must be under .4kg.

• Expecting technology to evolve exponentially before the mission launches

• Two types of trade study– Spring load the balloon from the Lander to the

ground and deploy from there.– Shoot the helium into the balloon and inflate it

from the top of the Lander in a cone shape. This would create an upside down tear drop shape.

• Lifting Mechanism Option– Inflate an air bag to raise the packaged balloon

out of the 18 inch cube.

• Mylar- A plastic film that can take shape and form the skin of the balloon.

• Polyethylene- A common balloon material that retains helium well.

• Kevlar Scrim- Added to the polyethylene to make the skin of the balloon more resistant to tearing.

• Adhesive- strong durable glue to hold previous materials together.

• The thicker the balloon the more volume it occupies, and the heavier the balloon, but it makes a more durable balloon.

• The thinner the balloon the less volume it occupies, and the lighter the balloon, but it will be less durable.

• Solar Power: May provide a longer measurement sample during flight due to regenerative power. But, would cause extra hardware and weight. Also, there is limited solar exposure.

• Battery Power: Lithium Ion batteries add to the payload weight, but can be charged by Lander’s power supply.