VEGA Balloon System and Instrumentation

R. Kremnev (1) , V. Linkin (2) , A. Lipatov (2) , K. Pichkadze (2) , A. Shurupov (2) , A. Terterashvili (2) , R. Bakitko (3) , Jacques-Emile Blamont (4) , Christian Malique (5) , B. Ragent (6) , R. Preston (7) , L. Elson (7) , D. Crisp (8)

1 Intercosmos Council of the USSR Academy of Sciences
2 IKI - Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences
3 Institute of Radio Techniques and Electronics
4 CNES - Centre National d’Études Spatiales [Paris]
5 SA - Service d'aéronomie
6 ARC - NASA Ames Research Center
7 JPL - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
8 Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences [Pasadena]

The VEGA Venus balloon radio transmissions received on Earth were used to measure the motion of the balloons and to obtain the data recorded by onboard sensors measuring atmospheric characteristics. Thus the balloons themselves, the gondolas, the onboard sensors, and the radio transmission system were all components of the experiment. A description of these elements is given, and a few details of data sampling and formatting are discussed.

Domains: Sciences of the Universe [physics]

R. Kremnev, V. Linkin, A. Lipatov, K. Pichkadze, A. Shurupov, et al.. VEGA Balloon System and Instrumentation. Science, 1986, 231 (4744), pp.1408-1411. ⟨10.1126/science.231.4744.1408⟩. ⟨insu-03904467⟩