BARREL 2Y Data Processing Unit (HKPG) Analog Housekeeping Voltage, Temperature, Current, a

Over 50 stratospheric balloon flights were conducted across four campaigns from 2013 to 2016. The dataset contains housekeeping voltage, temperature, current, and payload status values recorded every 40 seconds by the BARREL mission, a NASA Living with a Star investigation designed to study electron losses from Earth's radiation belts. Data was collected from balloon launches in Antarctica (2013-2014) and Sweden (2015-2016) at altitudes around 30 km.

Use Cases

• Correlating payload status and sensor readings with X-ray spectrometer measurements of electron precipitation.
• Analyzing temporal variations in housekeeping data (voltage, temperature, current) over balloon flight durations.
• Studying the operational health and environmental conditions of balloon-borne instrumentation in the stratosphere.
• Characterizing the spatial and temporal scales of measurement campaigns mentioned in the description.

Strengths

• Data collected from over 50 balloon flights across four distinct campaigns (2013-2016).
• Measurements are taken at a consistent 40-second sampling interval.
• Mission was coordinated with the Van Allen Probes and other ground/space-based instruments.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The description notes that analog sensor data is based on a nominal layout and some payload differences may not be reflected.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Recorded by instrumentation on BARREL (Balloon Array for RBSP Relativistic Electron Losses) stratospheric balloons.

Time Range

Campaigns conducted in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 12:30:11.781959; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Balloon launches from Halley Bay and SANAE IV base in Antarctica, and Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, Sweden.