DURHAM UNIVERSITY SPACEFLIGHT

Uniting students with a love of space.

About Us

We are a society of students at Durham University passionate about all things space. We aim to provide an environment in which our cohort can develop their interest in space through hands-on projects, concurrent R&D, and networking with industry professionals. Engaging in the local community is an important aspect of shortening the gap between education and careers in the space-sector. As such we assist a richer STEM education system by bringing the UK Space Design Competition to local schools.

Durham University Society is a Durham SU student group whose details are: Durham Students’ Union (also known as Durham SU or DSU) is a charity registered in England and Wales (1145400) and a company limited by guarantee (07689815) address is Dunelm House, New Elvet, DURHAM, County Durham, DH1 3AN.

About Us

We are a society of students at Durham University passionate about all things space. We aim to provide an environment in which our cohort can develop their interest in space through hands-on projects, concurrent R&D, and networking with industry professionals. Engaging in the local community is an important aspect of shortening the gap between education and careers in the space-sector. As such we assist a richer STEM education system by bringing the UK Space Design Competition to local schools.

Durham University Society is a Durham SU student group whose details are: Durham Students’ Union (also known as Durham SU or DSU) is a charity registered in England and Wales (1145400) and a company limited by guarantee (07689815) address is Dunelm House, New Elvet, DURHAM, County Durham, DH1 3AN.

Our Projects

Rocketry - We won the Mach-23, the largest rocketry competition in the UK and came in the top 25% of all teams in the National Rocketry Championship. We also run the annual Freshers Rocketry, introducing amateur rocketry to new members, and allowing them to launch their first rockets. Now, we are building Rosemary-II, the rocket that will set the UK altitude record!

Weather Balloons - We develop custom trackers and hardware to send scientific payloads to the edge of space on helium latex balloons. With the aid of simulations and telemetry data, we retrieve them after the balloon bursts. See Project Aether below!

Robotics - We will be joining the Olympus Rover Trials, where we will construct a rover to navigate the sandy Martian terrain, while transporting cargo.

Our Projects

Rocketry - We won the Mach-23, the largest rocketry competition in the UK, and participated in the National Rocketry Championship. We also run the annual "Intro to Rocketry", for the new member, bringing new people to amateur rocketry. Now, we are building Rosemary-II, the rocket that will set the UK altitude record!

High-Altitude Balloons - We develop custom trackers and hardware to send scientific payloads to the edge of space on helium latex balloons. With the aid of simulations and telemetry data, we retrieve them after the balloon bursts. See Project Aether below!

Robotics - We will be joining the Olympus Rover Trials, where we will construct a rover to navigate the sandy Martian terrain, while transporting cargo.

Aether I: Highlights

Max. Altitude

19km

Dist. Travelled

18km

Flight Time

1.5 hrs

In June 2020, DUSF successfully launched a high-altitude balloon to the edge of space. The balloon was equipped with a teddy bear pilot, two cameras and solar tracker. It steadily rose to an estimated altitude of 19km capturing some incredible images of the Northwest of England and beautiful shots of the horizon with the familiar blue haze that dissipates to the darkness of space.

Our team worked remotely over the course of the year to research, design and build the balloon payload. Once it became possible to meet in-person, the modular components were assembled to complete the payload. The balloon was inflated with helium at the Physics Department and then launched from Mountjoy Hill on the Science Site. After a flight time of 88 minutes, the payload landed south of Consett, a town just outside of the North Pennines around 19 miles from Durham. All equipment used was then successfully recovered by the team.

This flight was tracked using a solar Iridium beacon that relayed GPS data and sensor readings to us via the Iridium satellite constellation. This allowed us to follow the balloon in real-time and find it after it had landed. Due to some anomoly mid-flight, the beacon failed to transmit ~10 sequential messages so the maximum altitude reached had to be calculated using predictions from the acquired data and compared to the footage captured.

The next flight, Aether II, is scheduled for launch in October 2021 and aims to bring improvements to all aspects of the payload. Two additional trackers with data-loggers will be used and an attempt will be made to release the teddy bear on a skydive from the edge of space!

Aether II: Highlights

Max. Altitude

34km

Dist. Travelled

177km

Flight Time

2.5 hrs

Inflated with helium that was generously sponsored by the Physics department, DU Spaceflight society’s second high-altitude balloon project, Aether II, was launched from James' Hill on Thursday, 4 November.

An enthusiastic team of 15 students witnessed the release of the Helium Latex balloon with great excitement. The giant white sphere was seen to be slowly floating away as a tiny dot and eventually vanishing into the azure sky on the crisp, sunny autumn morning.

The project spanned over a month during which students met up every Monday to discuss and design the payload, electronics, and mechanical components of the Balloon. Similar to its predecessor Aether I, Aether II is equipped with a teddy bear photographer/pilot with an addition of two data-log trackers. The solar iridium satellite tracker relayed the GPS and sensor data back to the team via the iridium satellite constellation. The balloon spent 2hrs 30min in flight and travelled 177 km. It reached the target altitude of 34km before bursting and landing in the peak district; was eventually retrieved by two team members.

With the introduction of a stabilisation system, the camera in the payload recorded beautiful high-quality footage of Earth seen from the stratosphere.

Aether III: Highlights

Max. Altitude

31km

Dist. Travelled

136km

Flight Time

5 hrs

Our third high altitude balloon, Aether III, with helium kindly supplied by Richard Massey in the Durham Physics Department, embarked on its celestial journey on Wednesday, 14th June. This mission marked a significant milestone as it carried our inaugural home-built GPS tracker, in addition to the Iridium-based solar tracker, we had used previously. The balloon also featured a set of experiments, such as an atmospheric monitoring board, collecting a plethora of data including UV measurements. The tracker exceeded our expectations, performing admirably up to 30km, before it stopped transmitting, likely due to power supply issues.

However, the balloon's fate was sealed by the combination of a late launch time at 4:30 pm and a slower-than-expected ascent rate, at only half of the anticipated speed. As a result, the balloon touched down after sunset, rendering our solar tracker ineffective in the absence of sufficient sunlight for signal transmission. Despite our diligent search on the Yorkshire moors that Sunday, daylight eluded us, and the balloon remained elusive. Nevertheless, valuable lessons were learned from this endeavour, propelling us towards Aether IV, where we will make further improvements to our tracking system.

In the Community

Beyond our practical projects, we aim to provide a wealth of opportunities for members to interact with the wider community. From talks by academics and industry professionals, and Space Conferences to outreach in local schools to bring the interest in space to future generations, we endeavour to build a community of space enthusiasts.

Get Involved

Drop us an email if you are a fellow space enthusiast or you are interested in working with us and we'll see how we can get you involved! Follow our social media for up-to-date information on what we're up to!

seds.society@durham.ac.uk