Fishing From The Edge Of Space

PR Log (Press Release) – May 09, 2009 – Fishing and spaceflight aren’t two things you expect to be related. Not so for nine students from the European ‘SpaceMaster’ program who have designed a reel.SMRT “real smart” project. These students are producing a low gravity platform for high altitude balloons using a standard fishing reel and line to continuously drop and reel up a scientific payload. The project aims to provide an alternative to parabolic flights, drop towers and space missions with unique advantages. By scaling up the concept it will be feasible to drop capsules to distances of 5km and beyond, drastically increasing the duration of low gravity and the number of tests compared to conventional platforms.  The reel.SMRT system also has a secondary benefit for balloon experiments: by lowering and reeling back up a tethered capsule, it is possible for scientists to take measurements further from the gondola. The system also has applications as a safety line for multiple drop tests for High Altitude or Martian atmosphere UAVs, or to produce low gravity conditions such as those on Mars or the Moon.
The reel.SMRT project shall fly on the BEXUS-9 (Balloon-born Experiments for University Students) from Esrange, Sweden, this October. The team are supported by the European Space Agency, the German Aerospace Centre, the Swedish National Space Board and Lulea Tekniska Universitat.