Team FAQ

Here you will find a collection of answers to frequently asked questions about high altitude ballooning, the project systems and general questions.

System FAQs

• How do I charge the system batteries?
• What do we do if our acrylic base plate broke? – Download and print this plate template on a 8.5x11in paper. Make sure to select Actual size under Page Sizing & Handling within printing settings otherwise it will print small. Foam core and other lightweight materials make good replacement base plates.
• How do I retrieve videos recorded on the Pi?
• I purchased a new Maestro board and now the motors on the ground station don’t work, what are the Maestro settings?
• Cutdown initiated unexpectedly. Why did cutdown initiate without the cutdown command being sent? 
  • The cutdown system has a timer which will activate cutdown after ~3 hours regardless of whether or not the cutdown command has been sent. To prevent cutdown from initiating earlier than expected, make sure to reset the cutdown system before your flight (check cutdown instructions). After resetting, you may unplug the cutdown system battery until you are ready to construct your flight string. Plugging the battery back in will reactivate the countdown timer from its last time-stamp.
• How do I set up the ad-hoc network so I may wirelessly connect to the pi with the GS laptop?
• How do I access the photos and videos stored on the Pi SD card?
• What could cause poor tracking of our payload during a flight or test? 
• Why won’t the ground station track and why aren’t we receiving GPS coordinates?
• Where can I access the CAD files for 3D printed parts?
• How do I link RFD modems?
• How do I link Ubiquiti modems?
• What is a good starting point for creating a harness for the payloads built during the workshops?
• Iridium Remote Configuration Application Development Tool
• Where can I get the .STL files for 3D printed components? 
• How do I live stream my video on youtube?
• What is the password to the ground station laptop? GSLaptop
• How do I create a backup/new RFD or Ubiquiti SD card?

  • “The SD card on the Pi is similar to a PCs hard drive and can not be copied. You can create a backup or ‘copy’ by creating an image, a .iso file. The flash drives provided during the workshop have an 8Gb image/.iso that can be used to create a new SD card for either payload. There is a slideshow with instructions on how to start from the .iso file and create a new SD card. There is another slideshow that shows how to set up each card to work with the Ubiquiti system or the RFD system. There is a thread on our forum about backing up SD cards at:  http://eclipsedesign.proboards.com/thread/9/raspberry-pi-sd-card-setup homepage is at: http://eclipsedesign.proboards.com

    You will need a computer with an SD card reader and a program like Win32DiskImager and you can make copies of the SD cards.”

• How do I reduce rotation of the payload?

General Project FAQs

• How do I access my live stream videos which have been archived? Login with your credentials and a list of all videos captured by eclipse teams will be available.
• Where can I get the NASA Adult Media Release Form or the NASA (Minor) Media Release Form
• What is the new tracking website address? Contact Shane or see EAR 15 email
• How do I use the supplied balloon filling equipment and how much helium should I use

HAB and Travel FAQs

• What type of thermal insulation is recommended? – Check out McMaster-Carr low temperature insulation. Depending on how much excess heat the experiment produces either the 1/4″ or 1/2” Low-Temperature Polyethylene Foam Rubber Insulation should work well. This insulation is relatively light and holds up very well to dry ice temperatures while preventing condensation during any change in temperature.

• What configuration should tracking, still image and video payloads be attached the flight string?
• How should I pick my ground station location and how do I set up the ground station downrange? – Keep in mind the 25 mile range is a line of site distance
• How much helium am I allowed to transport  and what are the regulations? NOTE - Relations are subject to change, it is your responsibility to know and follow all current and future regulations. Do not rely strictly on these documents.
• I am transporting more than 440 lbs worth of helium tanks, how do I create shipping papers? – See Transportation of Helium document for information on filling out the shipping paper. Click here for editable version. Also see the Emergency Response Guide (ERG 2016) safety information (emergency response and potential hazards) for helium: Helium Emergency Guide ERG 2016
• How do I choose a launch site?