SPACE reports that NASA’s GUSTO mission, which launched from Antarctica on Dec. 31, set a new agency record for a heavy-lift, long-duration scientific balloon flight. The balloon remained “aloft for a total of 57 days, 7 hours and 38 minutes, representing the longest flight of any NASA heavy-lift, long-duration balloon mission, according to a statement from the space agency.”
Full Story (SPACE)
Tag: High-Altitude
GE Aviation Conducts First High-Voltage, High-Altitude Test
Aviation Week reports GE Aviation “is preparing for the start of ground tests of a modified hybrid-electric CT7 turboprop variant following the completion of what the engine-maker says is the world’s first test in simulated altitude conditions of a megawatt-class and multi-kilovolt hybrid-electric propulsion system.” The tests are part of NASA’s Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstration project, through which GE “is developing a megawatt-scale hybrid-electric propulsion system which will be flight tested on a Saab 340B powered by modified CT7-9B turboprops.” Aviation Week mentions that BAE Systems “will provide energy management components, including the battery and cabling.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)