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Commercial Suborbital Balloon Flight Facility Takes Shape
coondoggie writes "The Near Space Corporation this week said it would begin developing a $6.9 million phase of what it says is the first commercial high altitude balloon flight facility in the country. Commercial balloon flights to near space will be launched – though the company didn't say when — from the new facility in Tillamook, Oregon, including several of those reserved through the NASA's Flight Opportunities Program."
If I only had a friggin' nickel for every twit with a Powerpoint presentation saying that they were "going to begin development" of some cool, radical technology. I now interpret this phrase as meaning someone is contemplating getting off the couch to make a Powerpoint of what they are thinking of doing.
Build the damned thing and fly it, or stop wasting my time with your empty words.
Balloon flights have been suborbital since the Montgolfier brothers first launched in 1783. The only orbital "balloons" I'm aware of are Bigelow's Genesis modules. Commercial ballooning goes back to the late 1700s as well.
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
They already do that, although the latitude is rather high. I built a few pieces of a terahertz receiver for a balloon-borne radio telescope called the STO. It's designed to launch at McMurdo and circle Antarctica for a few weeks.
The determined Real Programmer can write Fortran programs in any language.
'99 Suborbital Balloons'
Silence is a state of mime.
In that case,TX must have been too dangerous, what with all the conservative gasbags and even more cows.
The Tillamook airport also has on old blimp hangar that's big enough to inflate (at least partially) the balloon in. Also, being located on the west coast the prevailing winds will blow a balloon to the east and over the continent rather than over the ocean. Pictures here.
Orbiting isn't about elevation, it's about velocity. Even if a balloon made it to the altitude of the ISS, for example, it wouldn't be in orbit unless it was traveling at 17,000 MPH, which is the velocity required to orbit at that altitude and inclination.
Better known as 318230.
The winds come from the ocean and blow toward a largely unpopulated area. Sounds perfect for balloon launches.
I'd hope they'll recycle most of it. A small tank/pump would allow ascent/descent without spilling much. But NASA has piddled away a lot of helium on the shuttle so you can't be too sure.
Orbiting isn't about elevation
Elevation and velocity are inversely proportional
Call me when you've got orbitial balloon flights.
It was orbitching.
Actually, there have been a fair number of balloons (inflatable satellites) in orbit. The most famous are Echo 1 and Echo 2 in the 1960s
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!