THEMIS

Developed by Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) / Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial (INTA)

Balloon launched on 7/22/1990, from Base di Lancio Luigi Broglio, Trapani, Sicily, Italy

Purpose of the flight and payload description

THEMIS was the generic denomination of some technological missions carried out by the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) in the framework of the transmediterranean long-duration balloon flights of the ODISSEA campaigns. The name is rooted in the tradition followed by the french researchers who named the missions after characters found in Homer's masterpiece ''The Odyssey" or in the greek/roman mythology.

This particular flight transported onboard the following experiments:

A system of videocameras, photographic systems and accelerometers to obtain data in flight.

The ETER experiment developed by the Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial (INTA) from Spain aimed to the study of the UV radiation and atmospheric components.

FLUXMETRE a device developed by CNES to measure the solar radiation in shortwave wavelenghts of the spectrum.

TM-L a telemetry system tested by CNES which operates in the L-Band

Details of the balloon flight

Balloon launched on: 7/22/1990
Launch site: Base di Lancio Luigi Broglio, Trapani, Sicily, Italy  
Balloon launched by: Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES)
Balloon manufacturer/size/composition: Zero Pressure Balloon Zodiac - 900.000 m3
End of flight (L for landing time, W for last contact, otherwise termination time): 7/23/1990
Balloon flight duration (F: time at float only, otherwise total flight time in d:days / h:hours or m:minutes - ): 20 h 41 m
Landing site: In Spain
Campaign: ODISSEA 90  
Payload weight: 2595 kg
Gondola weight: 1790 kg

External references

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