Apply the modeling building process to the following task. Your team is designing a helium-filled balloon that will travel to at least 80,000 feet elevation in the atmosphere. The balloon will transport a payload comprised of a camera and a data acquisition system. Right now, you choose to solve a simpler problem, which is to develop a model that predicts the weight on the earth’s surface (at your location) such that a helium-filled balloon is neutrally buoyant. This simpler problem can be easily tested with an experiment in your classroom.

a. What are the relevant variables?

b. How are the variables related? What are the relevant equations? How can you apply these equations to develop a single algebraic equation to solve for your goal?

c. What is a simple and low-cost way to test your math model using experimental data?