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KA9LCF > NEWS 19.02.12 09:26l 48 Lines 1644 Bytes #999 (0) @ ALLIN
BID : 34239_KA9LCF
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Subj: ARN: Radio Science
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Sent: 120219/0547Z @:KA9LCF.#NEIN.IN.USA.NOAM #:34239 [165326] FBB7.01.35 alpha
From: KA9LCF@KA9LCF.#NEIN.IN.USA.NOAM
To : NEWS@ALLIN
RADIO SCIENCE: COMMUNICATIONS LOST WITH BLT-28
TEXAS TO CHINA HAM RADIO BALLOON
Communications with a high altitude amateur
radio floating balloon that was launched from
Texas with a final goal of reaching Nanjing
China has been lost. BLT-28 transmitting
callsign KT5TK-11 on APRS was lost at 00:50
hours UTC on February 12th. This was only 3
hours after the balloon was lofted skyward from
Katy, Texas, just west of the city of Houston.
Signals were lost when the balloon was passing
through the 45,700 feet over the Gulf of Mexico
about 110 miles south of Holly Beach, Louisiana.
This was possibly the coldest part
of the journey to that time with the last
telemetry reporting a temperature of -50
degrees Celsius.
There is some speculation that the lack of
signals from the balloon may have been caused
by the batteries freezing up. There is some
hope that a so-called watchdog circuit will
keep the electronics package alive until the
batteries have rejuvenated, if they ever do.
There was some hope that BLT-28 may have
actually crossed the Atlantic Ocean sometime
Monday morning, February 13th, but that has yet
to be confirmed either visually or by a
resumption of electronic tracking. If the APRS
transponder does return to life, it should be
transmitting on 144.800 MHz and will eventually
appear on various world wide APRS tracking
websites such as aprs.fi.
BLT-28 was the latest in a long series of high
altitude ham radio balloon launches sponsored
South Texas Balloon Launch Team. Their website
is in cyberspace at www.w5acm.net.
(ARNewslineT, Southgate, WB5ITT)
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