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DIY Space Photography

Posted by samzenpus on from the exploring-on-a-budget dept.

Four Spanish teenagers sent a camera-operated weather balloon into the stratosphere. The boys built the electronic sensor components from scratch. Gerard Marull Paretas, Sergi Saballs Vila, Marta Gasull Morcillo and Jaume Puigmiquel Casamort attached a £56 camera to a heavy duty £43 latex balloon, and sent their science project 20-miles above the Earth. Team leader Gerard Marull, 18, said, "We were overwhelmed at our results, especially the photographs, to send our handmade craft to the edge of space is incredible."

22 of 106 comments (clear)

  1. Next time I'm on an airplane by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'll be sure to be thinking of people putting random shit in the air.

    1. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by rillopy · · Score: 2, Informative

      The "edge of space" is around 62 miles, also where the X-15 set its altitude records. But this project only (ha) went to 20 miles. So you'd be very very safe from random debris in an X-15!

    2. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Next time you're on an airplane we'll be sure to ground all birds worldwide so you're not worried about 'random shit in the air'.

    3. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by e2d2 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      In the US one can notify the FAA of such events and they will release a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) that will let them know the craft is in the area, with a description and advice. They require 24 hours notice. Every pilot in the US checks for NOTAMs along their designated flight plan and adjust accordingly. This is standard procedure before any takeoff and taught at the most basic level by flight schools before you ever leave the ground.

      If you do launch _any_ craft into the air in the US it will fall under some sort of regulation that you should follow. In this case it's most likely part 101 Around the world governments have similar regulations in place.

      My point? This has been done before and done right, safe procedures are in place.

    4. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by SBrach · · Score: 2, Informative

      I think the air traffic lanes and similar cruising altitudes decrease your "big" approximation a bit. Question, how long was the balloon between 25,000 and 30,000 feet.

    5. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by LordKronos · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Nice way to mess up statistics. More or less zero is not equal to zero. Your odds of winning the lotto are also nearly zero, yet people win it on a regular basis. Heck, some people even win it twice. That doesn't mean I give any consideration to the fact that I could win it.

    6. Re:Next time I'm on an airplane by Xest · · Score: 2, Funny

      Dear FAA,
      In 24 hours I intend to release balloons into the air randomly around Chicago O'Hare. Please alert all pilots so that they can go and land elsewhere.

      Regards,

      Real life troll.

      Seriously though, I assume as you say the regulations in place govern also where you can and can't release things into the air? Presumably you can't just launch something wherever you feel like even if you do give notice and presumably the FAA can reject requests?

  2. Google or no Google? by DavidJSimpson · · Score: 5, Funny

    From the article:

    "Proving that you don't need Google's billions ... [they] followed the progress of their balloon using high tech sensors communicating with Google Earth."

    Maybe they did need Google's billions.

  3. What kind of clearance by syousef · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I wonder what kind of clearance this sort of balloon experiment requires. You wouldn't want to do this anywhere near air traffic routes for fear of hitting an airliner. I know the equipment is light but I imagine it'd still do some damage if it got sucked into an engine or hit a plane travelling at mach 0.85.

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    1. Re:What kind of clearance by MrFlibbs · · Score: 5, Interesting

      A guy in our local Astronomy club researched this and gave a presentation on the requirements a year ago. As I recall, the FAA requirements were that the balloon launch site not be within X miles of an airport, that it must reflect RADAR (accomplished by dangling cardboard covered with aluminum foil), and that the cord used to tie the instrument package to the balloon must break easily. (Can't remember the spec, but it's something like 10 pound test line.) Part of the trick is calibrating the lift rate before launch so the balloon rises at an appropriate rate. Too slow, and the balloon will break too low in the atmosphere. Too fast, and it won't break close enough to the launch site to recover the payload. What's cool is you can have the package use a GPS to transmit data on altitude and position, and a thermometer to give readings at altitude. The temperature gets down to -50C, so the instruments must be in a styrofoam box to survive.

    2. Re:What kind of clearance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      Actually nearly all GPS units will not give readings above 60,000 feet. This is to prevent foreign countries from using our own system to lob missiles at us. KySat http://www.kysat.com/home.aspx did a similar balloon mission last summer. Some chips work, others dont. In our case it was a 50% failure rate.

  4. I thought everyone did this. by conureman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    We just put on our return address back in the neolithic days, when I was a kid. Mine went from Livermore to Hollister.

    --
    The cost of that cleanup, of course, will be borne by taxpayers, not industry.
  5. SABLE-3 did it on August 11/07 - 117,597ft/ 35850m by dan+of+the+north · · Score: 5, Informative

    "SABLE-3 was launched on Saturday, August 11th, 2007, at 9:31 AM with a payload, consisting of a Nikon Coolpix P2 digital camera set to take 1 image every minute and a Byonics MicroTrak 300 APRS Tracker, that the Kaysam 1200 gram balloon carried to over 117,597 feet. The last payload camera photo from the ground was just before it was launched, at 9:31 AM, and the last photo before the balloon burst was the photo above, at 12:01 PM, exactly 2.5 hours or 150 images later." link - more info here

  6. It's been done by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Here's images from a similar flight conducted by Oklahoma State university students in July last year:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/arena5/sets/72157606119049987/

  7. Congratulations by symes · · Score: 2, Funny

    I think this is fantastic and that the guys who achieved this deserve all the (positive) attention they are getting. I wish more people thier age could get into sending stuff into space... actuially forget that last bit, we'll just end up with empty cans of lager and unsuspecting victims hanging in the sky over the UK.

  8. Re:SABLE-3 did it on August 11/07 - 117,597ft/ 358 by GogglesPisano · · Score: 2

    Granted, this kind of thing has been done before, but that doesn't diminish the fact that this is simply a really cool project, particularly for a group of high school kids.

    They have a flickr page with more photos of the balloon and the results (note that much of the captions are in Spanish). I'm impressed; in fact, I'd love to try this myself.

  9. Um... by Noxieas · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "Proving that you don't need Google's billions or the BBC weather centre's resources, the four Spanish students managed to send a camera-operated weather balloon into the stratosphere." .... "the budding scientists, all aged 18-19, followed the progress of their balloon using high tech sensors communicating with Google Earth." wait... what?

  10. Re:BTDT? by camperdave · · Score: 3, Funny

    BTDT?

    Twiki? Is that you?

    --
    When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
  11. Re:Possible Malware on TFA? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    No worries, most people don't RTFA

  12. Quite a balloon... by Trailer+Trash · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...to lift a 56 pound camera.

    --
    Do you have ESP?
  13. Re:SABLE-3 did it on August 11/07 - 117,597ft/ 358 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    An small nitpick... The captions are not in Catalonian. Are in Catalan.

  14. Kite Aerial Photography by wooferhound · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Reminds me of Kite Aerial Photography . . .
    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=yYl&ei=xI7BSZzrKoTM-AbvmeXsBg&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=kite+aerial+photography&spell=1

    --
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