Yesterday I got to take a side trip to Fort Sumner, New Mexico. I was helping set up a a command/data ground station there, which, depending on the winds, can be used to extend BIT’s flight. I flew out of Palestine airport, just around the corner from CSBF. I took their plane, and the balloon facility in Fort Sumner location is at the airport. There was some worry that the bad weather in Palestine would mean we couldn’t fly back, but the pilots found a way. […]
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Over the past few days work has been going on to get the telescope focused and aligned. And to have it stay that way, which is proving to be the challenge. While a small group works on that, others keep themselves busy. […]
Since I’m back after a short absence from the field, I should catch up on posting old photos from before I left. The main work on the telescope was assembling the optics box and preparing for focusing/alignment tests. While that goes on, others have been working on gondola assembly, including the local Texans installing their electronics. After a long initial week of work, most of us took some time to visit the Caldwell Zoo nearby. […]
With the telescope disassembled, inspected and cleaned, it is ready to be put back together again. Then the mirrors get aligned in preparation for focus testing. Reassembly also starts in gondola land. On a nice sunny morning, I take a walk around the highbay. […]
SuperBIT is preparing for a test flight in Palestine, TX. I arrive a day late with the Princeton team. We arrived half a day after the Toronto team, who had unpacked everything. I join the group preparing to test electronics in the Bemco: a big thermal/vacuum chamber. We use it to check that things will survive the cold and almost-vacuum of the stratosphere. Another group unpacks the telescope and disassembles it for a checkup and cleaning. […]