Abstract: Knowledge of the heat transfer mechanism and thermal characteristics of stratospheric aerostats is the precondition of thermal control design, which is crucial to the development of stratospheric aerostat technology. On the basis of analyzing the convective and radiative thermal environment of the stratosphere, the heat transfer principle is employed to analyze the complex mechanism governing the thermal status of stratospheric aerostats and the influencing factors. After that, the latest research advances in the thermal characteristics of stratospheric aerostats are reviewed. The relevant methods, thermal models and typical results are introduced. The primary conclusions obtained from these advances as well as existing problems are discussed. Finally, the further research areas for the thermal characteristics of stratospheric aerostats are proposed.

Key words: stratospheric aerostat, thermal environment, thermal characteristics, thermal control, heat transfer