Ultra-Long-Duration Balloons SubCluster
Part of a NASA-funded project, the Ultra-Long-Duration Balloon Initiative (ULDB) supports security and intelligence operations as well as world-class science by carrying experiments to altitudes of 20 to 50 kilometers in a variety of research areas. Technology developments resulting from ULDB will benefit NASA’s Mars Scout Missions, scheduled for 2007. The NMSU ULDB project works on the development of balloon systems capable of carrying payloads that weigh several tons to an altitude of approximately 40 kilometers for missions that last up to 100 days. ULDB works with the Suborbital Center of Excellence (see below) to offer a mobile ULDB technology showcase for secondary school students. In addition, NMSU is proposing the development of an On Demand Intelligence Node (ODIN). Funding will allow the development of a conceptual design for a full-sized prototype. ODIN will provide a persistent surveillance capacity using multiple sensors to collect data without interfering with other reconnaissance activities.