| Hemispherical
Network
The simulation on this page shows a hemispherical balloon
network performing detailed Earth science data collection.
There are 383 balloons in a network from +15° latitude
to the North pole. The position of each balloon is represented
by a red dot. Yellow circles represent the locus of
points that emit to the balloons with an elevation angle
of 2 degrees or more. The green areas indicate overlap.
Each frame of the simulation represents 1 hour of the
evolution of the network.
For each balloon, control actions are determined by
algorithms that have been used to describe the motion
of flocks of birds and schools of fish. Control is achieved
by means of a StratoSail(R) Ballon Guidance System
(BGS).
The movie on this web page is a 7-day excerpt from
a longer 390-day simulation. In the longer simulation,
coverage quality is maintained throughout the year.
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