An apparatus for personalized atmospheric and flight data collection aboard high altitude weather balloons

Abstract A high altitude balloon (HAB) is a low cost platform capable of carrying a payload over 30,000 meters above the Earth. HABs are often used for photography of the curvature of the Earth and experimentation in the lower stratosphere, offering the opportunity for affordable atmospheric and climate experimentation and research. While HABs offer the ability for original research, existing data loggers do not provide an opportunity for personalized data collection, as all options are closed source or require substantial modification of code and hardware. The apparatus presented in this paper is designed to foster customization by researchers through specially segmented and easily adaptable code, the use of the Arduino microcontroller, and by being comprised of affordable off-the-shelf components - allowing alteration without advanced knowledge of programming or electronics. Without modification, the presented apparatus collects equivalent data to commercial options while costing just 1/5 the price to produce. This paper features the steps used by researchers to personalize the presented apparatus with a CO2 sensor and a field test in which student researchers customized the presented apparatus with a UV light sensor for climate and ozone studies.