ARCA: Air Strato Electric UAV completes rough landing tests

On February 13, 2014, Air Strato, electrical powered unmanned aerial vehicle performed the first take-off from rough, frozen ground.

The aircraft performed a short flight at 25 m altitude and then landed.

Air Strato was powered by four electrical engines. Two supplementary electric motors (engines) were added to boost power and shorten the take-off distance.

Additional suspension strengthening was installed on the wings and forward landing gear.

Despite this addition, the right landing gear suspension sustained some damage at touch down.

"The aircraft had only 10 percent of the batteries intended for the commercial version so we had to add ballast to simulate take-off weight."

"We also added two more electrical motors to increase thrust, needed on the rough ground to decrease take-off distance that, combined with the landing gear suspension, provided for a smooth taxi and take-off on rough terrain."

"It took less than 30 m to lift into the air at maximum thrust. Also we were impressed by the aircraft's rate of climb." - Teodor Diaconu, ARCA flight dynamics engineer.

Air Strato is a high altitude electrical powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). It can reach altitudes of above 18 km and has an autonomy of 7 hours on internal batteries and 3 days using solar panels.

It can carry a variable payload up to 30 kg consisting of surveillance equipment or other scientific instruments.

ARCA: Romanian Moon Shot by Balloon

NASA has successfully launched Ares 1-X, the prototype replacement to the space shuttle. But halfway across the globe, a rising power is posing a challenge to America's space dominance. I speak, of course, of Romania, which is readying a critical flight of her mighty moon-balloon.

No typo there, they really are shooting for the moon in a balloon. At least that's the plan of the non-profit Aeronautics and Cosmonautics Romanian Association (ARCA), which is using an oldie but sort-of-goodie idea for getting something into space: Tie a rocket to a balloon, launch the balloon and then launch the rocket from the stratosphere.

The US briefly tried this strategy in the 1950s, but they eventually abandoned it in favour of more stable launch pads, like the one that the Ares 1-X used. There's a few advantages to the more concrete approach: It's easier to orient your rocket from the ground, you don't have to worry about it blowing away, and critically, it's not going to fall on anybody.

It's in part due to that last safety concern that a Romanian frigate is carrying ARCA's Helen test rocket into the Black Sea. The Helen is a tour-de-force in Transylvanian technology. Rather than launching a rocket with a complicated staging system, they're just tying their stages together with string. When the first stage runs out they'll cut the cord and fire the second, and the third, and onward until they deliver their payload (which appears to be some sort of orange football or rugby ball, depending on your nationality).

The Helen, Romania's third test flight, could launch as soon as tomorrow. Stay tuned moon and vampire lovers alike for all your ARCA coverage!

Credit: ARCA