Article originally published in 20 minutos on 5/08/2021, and its author is Mar Gulis (CSIC). The photograph illustrating this post is courtesy of Germán Martín.
Launch in 3, 2, 1… Stop dreaming of being part of a space mission! Now you can make it a reality with the fifth edition of the Servet citizen science initiative. If you like astronautics, space navigation and anything that moves above 12,000 metres above sea level, Servet V is waiting for you, whatever training and knowledge you have. This scientific project, open to the public, seeks to democratise access to space and invites people to propose, design and carry out their own sub-space missions. But the first thing you must do is fill in, before Sunday 29 August 2021, the participation form.
Servet V will launch three sounding balloons (Hwoyee HY-1600, able to carry several capsules of up to 400 grams each), which will set course for the stratosphere and return to Earth after collecting a great deal of scientific data on their journey up to 36,000 metres in altitude. Radiation and temperature, among other parameters, will be measured, tests of LoRaWAN transmissions and long-distance video will be run, etc. So, do you want to be part of Servet V? Read the rules; there are two ways to take part:
- CAPSULE OF UP TO 400 g. You provide the capsule and the project provides all the infrastructure (balloons, helium, insurance, launch organisation, etc.). Although an attempt will be made to recover the payload, this is not guaranteed. Nine capsules of up to 400 grams will be selected.
- 0 g CAPSULE. If what you want is to take part in the event, help with logistics, learn and lend a hand with the organisation, don’t hesitate: this is your option.
Once the deadline for receiving applications ends, on 29 August, the selection of participants will be announced on 6 September. The Servet V launch is scheduled for Saturday 30 October 2021 in a town in Zaragoza yet to be defined. The day before, the preparations will take place, and on Sunday 31 the results will be presented to the general public. The data obtained in the different editions of Servet will be published freely and at no cost on the project website so that anyone can consult and analyse them.
This citizen initiative began in June 2017 with the launch of the first sounding balloon, Servet I, and since then the project has continued to bring together expert and amateur space navigation enthusiasts, makers, developers, radio amateurs, etc. In addition, another of the project’s objectives is to bring science to rural areas, which is why the launch areas chosen in previous years have been small municipalities in the province of Zaragoza, such as Alpartir or Alfamén. In the latter, in 2019, the sounding balloons equipped with the aeronautical missions of the Servet IV project were launched.
World record for LoRaWAN transmission distance
One of the Servet IV balloons, “after sending its last signals on the night of the launch while crossing Soria, unexpectedly came back to life. Three ‘heartbeats’ were detected two days later as it passed over the Azores,” recounted Francisco Sanz, executive director of the Ibercivis Foundation. This balloon broke the world record for the distance reached by a communication transmitted over the LoRaWAN network protocol. With a power of 0.025 watts, its signal was received at a distance of 766 kilometres.
LoRaWAN is a low-power wide-area network technology (LPWAN: Low Power Wide Area Network), designed so that low-power devices can communicate with Internet-connected applications over long-range wireless connections using the ISM radio bands, internationally reserved for the use of radio-frequency energy for industrial, scientific and medical purposes other than telecommunications.
Another balloon also managed to transmit at 744 km via TTN (The Things Network), over LoRaWAN. In addition, radiation was measured, transmission was made over APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System, an amateur radio system for real-time digital communications), real-time video was sent, etc. These capsules were recovered in Buñuel, Navarre, but those travelling on other balloons were not so lucky.
Servet has the support of the Ibercivis Foundation (of which the Spanish National Research Council is a part), Etopia Centre for Art and Technology, the CESAR Laboratories at Etopia, the University of Zaragoza, the Spanish Radio Amateurs Union and the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology – Ministry of Science and Innovation. If you have any questions you can contact info@ibercivis.es