Research Balloon Lost in Alaska

Published: 1 August 2016

A tethered balloon used for atmospheric measurements was being prepared July 27 at Oliktok Point, Alaska, when an unexpected gust of wind lifted the balloon and severed its tether cord. The balloon rose and drifted north across the Beaufort Sea, dropping to the sea roughly 60 km north of Oliktok.

The balloon, which carried Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility equipment worth approximately $30,000 to $40,000, along with about a thousand feet of the severed tether line, was expected to sink into the ocean. No injuries occurred.

The balloon was being launched as part of the Inaugural Campaigns for ARM Research using Unmanned Systems, or ICARUS, an internal initiative at the third ARM Mobile Facility at Oliktok that is collecting spatial information about the rapidly changing arctic environment using unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and tethered balloon systems (TBS) in conjunction with ground-based instruments. ICARUS is gathering data on surface radiation, heat fluxes, and vertical profiles of the basic atmospheric state (temperature, humidity, and horizontal wind), as well as turbulence, aerosol properties, and cloud properties.

ICARUS is expected to resume with a new balloon within 60 days.

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The ARM Climate Research Facility is a national scientific user facility funded through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science. The ARM Facility is operated by nine Department of Energy national laboratories including Sandia National Laboratories, which operates the third ARM Mobile Facility.