pcb
overview
Designed and built the electronics payload for a high altitude balloon (HAB) capable of reaching the stratosphere. The system continuously logs environmental and positional data throughout the flight, from launch to burst to recovery, and transmits telemetry over radio for real-time ground tracking.
hardware
Texas Instruments MCU coordinating all sensor reads, data logging, and radio transmission. Low-power sleep states between samples to extend battery life across a multi-hour flight.
NMEA-output GPS module for real-time latitude, longitude, and altitude. Flight path logged continuously and streamed to ground station for live tracking and recovery.
High-altitude barometric sensor used as a secondary altitude estimate and for atmospheric pressure profiling throughout the ascent and descent.
Sensors sampled at regular intervals to build a vertical profile of atmospheric temperature and humidity from ground level to burst altitude.
firmware
Firmware written in C on the TI MCU. A main loop reads all sensors on a fixed interval, packages data into a structured log entry, writes to onboard flash, and queues a radio transmission. Interrupt-driven UART handles incoming GPS sentences. The system is designed to operate unattended for the full duration of the flight with no ground intervention required.
results
Payload reached above 30 km altitude. GPS lock was maintained through the stratosphere and the balloon was successfully recovered. Logged data captured a full temperature and pressure profile of the ascent, showing the expected temperature inversion in the tropopause and sharp pressure drop through the stratosphere.