Testing Guide

Throughout the build process, it is very important to test out your payload! Here’s some of the tests that will be needed to be run to fly on Apex.

Battery Life Test

Make sure to test that your experiment can run for at least 3-5 hours on your battery supply through a full battery life test. The more safety margin you add, the better, as things like cold temperatures and launch delays can reduce your battery life.

Cold Test

Batteries tend to function with much reduced capacity in cold environments. To test this, you could place your electronics in a plastic bag, turn them on, then run a full battery life test in the freezer. A freezer typically gets down to -10°C. To really test against the harsh conditions in the stratosphere, however, you might want to go the extra mile and use dry ice in a cooler. Temperatures in the stratosphere can get down to -45 deg. C in the Summer. Even colder in the Winter. Document your tests to show off later! We will only experience these cold temperatures for about an hour.

Stair Drop Test

Whatever goes up must come down. The balloon will eventually fall at extremely high speeds. Thankfully, a parachute is attached to reduce the fall, but it won’t slow it down completely and it could impact at any angle. To test this, turn your finished experiment on and toss your closed payload down a flight of stairs. If your experiment can survive 3 stair drops without damage, it should be good to go for launch day. Leave yourself enough time in the schedule to rebuild the payload box if it doesn’t go well! Record your tests to show off later!