Balloon-Borne Electric Field Meter Launches
Launch Videos:
- Launch Montage (Flash, 15 kb)
- Launch Montage (Windows Media Player, 11.1 mb)
- Childress (Quick Time, 1 MB)
- Childress (Real Video); Childress(lg) (Quick Time).
- Polylaunch (Real Video); Polylaunch(sm), Polylaunch(lg) (Quick Time)
![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916113810im_/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/observations/images/flightprep_t.jpg)
The instrument train on the balloon is from the top down:
parachute and radiosonde for measuring temperature, pressure, winds, and
location; a gps tracking beacon; and an electric field meter, which is a
unique instrument for measuring the strength of the electric field in all
three dimensions.
![Team members launch a balloon into winds blowing into the lowered wall cloud.](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916113810im_/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/observations/images/efmlaunch_t.jpg)
Launch of instruments in winds blowing into the lowered,
wall cloud. The balloon train was an electric field meter, and GPS
tracking beacon.
![The team releases a balloon during a night launch](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916113810im_/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/observations/images/nightlaunch_t.jpg)
Night time balloon launch
![Team members prepare the balloon-borne instrument train before launch.](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916113810im_/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/observations/images/launchprep_t.jpg)
Preparing
the balloon-borne instrument train for launch near a wall cloud (lowered
cloud in center of photo).