Expeditions Through the Sky Will Send Unmanned Aircraft To The Stratosphere

Space expeditions are often a means of proving the progress of the world of science and technology, and the people of Indonesia will soon be witnesses to the recording of a new history in this field. Titled "Through the Sky", it is an expedition to the stratosphere using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aka drone.

Okay, the stratosphere may not yet be called outer space, but at least this is the first step to truly penetrate the Earth's sky for aeronautical experts homeland. Even so, this Expedition Through the Sky was carried out not only to show off, but also to develop aeronautical research and accelerate the acceleration of national space technology.

The unmanned aircraft used in the expedition through the Sky is the Ai-X1 model made by AeroTerrascan based in Bandung. This domestically produced UAV will be towed using a weather balloon to a height of 30 km, before finally disengaging and activating the system Autopilot.

The Ai-X1 has a payload capacity of up to 600 grams, enough to carry the number of sensors needed to collect meteorological and aeronautical data. Feature anti-icing also pinned to anticipate temperatures that can reach -70 degrees Celsius up there.

The focus of Penetrating the Sky facilitated by the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) in the context of atmospheric science and research is to develop a space shuttle equipped with the capability of return-to-home and can be reused. So far, we have been able to send probe to conduct atmospheric research, but could not return to the starting point of its launch.

The previous flight test was carried out on August 27 yesterday. In the experiment, the Ai-X1 UAV escaped from a weather balloon at an altitude of 12,9 km and managed to stabilize itself with the help of autopilot. While in the air, the Ai-X1 is in constant communication with ground units, receiving telemetry signals and transmitting the collected data.

The final launch of Penetrating the Sky itself is planned to be carried out on October 28, 2016 with the LAPAN Space and Atmospheric Technology Test and Observation Center in Garut as its location.