2023-2024 Project Overview
Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project
A team holding a balloon.
Utilizing scientific high altitude ballooning, higher education institutions worked to investigate the October 14, 2023 annular and April 8, 2024 total solar eclipses. These STEM learners immersed themselves into an innovative NASA-mission-like adventure in data auquisition and analysis.
A nationwide effort of STEM learners immersing themselves into an innovative NASA-mission-like adventure in data auquisition and analysis through scientific ballooning during the October 14, 2023 annular and April 8, 2024 total solar eclipses.
The project fully supports 53 teams. Of the 75 participating institutions, more than 30% are Minority Serving Institutions and 15% are Community Colleges. The teams are divided into nine pods to facilitate effective education. NEBP provides a learning environment that uses exemplary practices to make certain the 750+ participants are (and feel) supported, engaged, and valued. In addition, NEBP will provide infrastructure tools and best practices to help participating institutions build collaborations that could continue far beyond the scope of this project.
Image taken from balloon payload October 2023
NEBP includes development and implementation of two learner-centered activity tracks – engineering and atmospheric science. At sites along the eclipse path, student teams in the engineering track will use innovative larger balloon systems to live stream video to the NASA eclipse website, observe in situ perturbations in atmospheric phenomena, and conduct individually designed experiments. Atmospheric science track teams will make frequent observations by launching hourly radiosondes on helium-filled weather balloons. Student participants will work with atmospheric science experts throughout the project and will publish results in peer-reviewed journals.
