I-Corps: Sub-orbital Ballooning System (SBS) for Earth and Space Observations, Meteorological Applications, and Scientific Studies

I-Corps：用于地球和空间观测、气象应用和科学研究的亚轨道气球系统 (SBS)

• 批准号: 2132197
• 负责人: Ibrahim Tansel
• 金额: $ 5万
• 依托单位: Florida International University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-06-01 至 2022-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2132197&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Corps; Sub; orbital; Ballooning; System

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a sub-orbital ballooning system for Earth and space observations, meteorological applications, and scientific studies. Currently, the only way to access this region is via rocketry, which does not allow more than a few minutes of access. The proposed technology may remove the hurdles in accessing the mesospheric sub-orbital region for a prolonged duration and allow balloon-based payload launch support at a cost less than 50% of the current sub-orbital launch costs. In addition, the proposed technology may intensify the exploitation of mesosphere for scientific research, exploration, and security purposes. It is estimated that the proposed system may save $1M/sq.km/y in capital expenses and $2M/sq.km/y in operational expenses for telecommunication service providers, making them lower-cost with wide coverage for next generation networks (5G/6G). In addition, the proposed technology may fulfill the remote sensing and technology demonstration needs of the private sector and military needs for communication and persistent surveillance, as well as the needs of federal agencies, academia, and the scientific community in better understanding the mesosphere and its effects on the Earth, which otherwise is not feasible using existing technologies of rocketry or high-altitude ballooning. A goal for the technology is to enable low-cost space exploration that will open doors to many who have no access to space today due to technological limitations and cost constraints, accelerating space exploration.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a sub-orbital ballooning system for Earth and space observations, meteorological applications, and scientific studies. The technology leverages advancement in ballooning technology by incorporating previous research on size control by energy and mass transfer to reach higher altitudes throughout the mesosphere and up to the edge of space (von Kármán line). The artificial intelligence (AI) powered system is designed to sense the environment, understand the ballooning transport needs, and fulfil energy demands facilitating the inflation or deflation of the balloon envelop. This capability enables the raising or lowering of the balloon’s altitude without bursting the balloon. The proposed technology performs precise altitude control that enables access to the sub-orbital region for prolonged durations. The proposed technology was designed to address the technology gap and market needs followed by proof-of-concept demonstrations on scaled prototypes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该I-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发用于地球和空间观测，气象应用和科学研究的轨道气囊系统。目前，访问该区域的唯一方法是通过火箭仪，它不允许超过几分钟的访问。拟议的技术可能会消除在延长持续时间内进入中圈亚轨道区域时的障碍，并允许基于气球的有效载荷发射支持，其成本不到当前轨道次要次要发射成本的50％。此外，所提出的技术可能会加强对科学研究，勘探和安全目的的中层的开发。据估计，拟议的系统可以节省100万美元/平方英尺的资本费用，而电信服务提供商的运营费用为200万美元/平方英尺/码，这使得它们具有下一代网络（5G/6G）的广泛覆盖率。此外，提出的技术可能会满足私营部门的遥远敏感性和技术演示需求，以及对沟通和持续监视的军事需求，以及联邦机构，学术界和科学界的需求，以更好地了解中层及其对地球的影响，否则使用Rocketry或High-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Altipel Balloon and In否则不可行。该技术的一个目标是实现低成本的空间探索，这将为许多由于技术限制和成本限制而无法进入当今空间的人，这加速了太空探索。这项I-Corps项目基于用于地球和太空观测，气象学应用和科学研究的地球亚轨道气球系统的开发。该技术通过将能源和传质的尺寸控制研究纳入以前的尺寸控制，以达到整个Mesosphere的较高高度，并在整个空间边缘（vonKármán系列）达到更高的高度。人工智能（AI）动力系统旨在感知环境，了解气球的运输需求并满足能量需求，以支持气球信封的通胀或放气。这种能力使气球高度的升高或降低而不会破裂气球。所提出的技术执行精确的高度控制，使得可以长时间访问亚轨道区域。拟议的技术旨在满足技术差距和市场需求，然后是对缩放原型的概念概念证明。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响评估审查标准，通过评估被认为是珍贵的支持。