The
Height of the Balloon is around 160 ft (approximate
height equivalent to a 20-strey building)
The
fabric has been designed to be rip-proof with steel
rods woven inside the fabric after every 1cm (not visible
to human eye)
The balloon will be inflated by blowing air into it
using portable fans and it will take about 2.5 hours
to reach its full size.
The
weight of the entire Hot-air Balloon (including the
Gondola, the envelope, 18 burners and other apparatus)
is around 1,820 kgs.
THE
BURNERS
There
are 18 fuel burners of different capacity and design
used for inflating the balloon. All flight burners and
the landing burners are located on a rigid stainless
steel tubular frame approx 1-1.5m above the top of the
capsule.
Three
fuel tanks – two filled with kerosene (standard
Jet 1 Fuel) used for ascent and one filled with propane
used for descent are also mounted onto the capsule externally.
THE FLIGHT
On
November 26, 2005 the flight is scheduled to take-off
from Polo Grounds, Mahalaxmi Race Course, Mumbai at
around 7:00am in the morning immediately after sunrise.
A
control room is being set up to monitor the mission.
A flight director, trajectory director, an air-traffic
controller and other officials from the Tata Institute
of Fundamental Research (TIFR) would man the entire
mission.
During
the flight, the team MI-70K would be constantly in touch
with Dr. Singhania through a VHF radio, transponder,
satellite phones and Global positioning System (GPS)
specially attached to the capsule.
The
Indian Army and Indian Air Force would be on a standby
on the day of the take-off incase of any emergency.
The
atmospheric pressure at sea level is 1,013.2 mbs while
at 70000 ft it is 40 mbs (the temperature at 70, 000
ft is around –95?C). It would naturally be impossible
to breath normally at these pressures and if one were
to be exposed to the elements even briefly the human
blood would boil.
During
take-off, there would be just six kerosene burners supplying
power. As Dr. Singhania climbs through 40,000 ft., all
18 burners would be working at full capacity.
He
will climb until all these burners are snuffed out,
in a likely “ripple effect” experienced
at high altitudes.
The
balloon will continue its climb, slowing all the time,
a condition known as “the dwell”, like the
trajectory of a huge shell.
During
the “cold descent” it will reach rates of
2500 feet per minute at speeds of up to 30 mph.
As
it reaches denser atmosphere at 30,000 ft, the descent
starts to slow down. By 10,000 ft, it is expected to
decline to 1500/2000 feet per minute.
The
kerosene burners, once extinguished, cannot be re-ignited
in the air, and the fuel will need to be shut off, lest
it drench the capsule and burn it.
Dr.
Singhania can light his propane burners at 10,000 ft
to slow his descent, and begin looking for a place to
land, avoiding power lines, populated areas, lakes,
and forests, being always aware that the balloon he
is flying, weighing 40 tons, is bigger than any balloon
he has ever flown before.
The
entire duration of the flight is expected to be around
five hours (Time to be taken to reach the height of
70,000ft: 3.5 hours: Time to be taken to descent: 1.5
hours).
During
the entire flight the balloon would be tracked and assisted
by ground controllers at “mission control”.
The
descent of the balloon entirely depends upon prevailing
wind conditions and according to the predictions of
the technical team; Dr. Vijaypat Singhania will be landing
in an area between Nashik and Sangamner.
After
a successful landing an elaborate team of ground crew
would retrieve the pilot and his equipment from the
landing site. |
