Two years ago, my wife got me the greatest Christmas present ever - the basic materials for launching a high altitude balloon. She knew I had an interest in getting my own awesome still shots of earth from near-space (approximately 100,000' altitude), so she did the research and got me started.
My interest began with seeing the
Citi Thank You Cards commercial - the one where the guy uses his points to buy a weather balloon. At one point in the ad, you catch a glimpse of the payload including the camera equipment. The ad ends with the guy and his friends viewing footage from near-space. I was intrigued.
Around the same time, I came across
Make Magazine: Issue 24. The issue included a single page article that illustrated the basic components of a weather balloon space probe, complete with links to various sites to get more information and purchase components.
After a bit of research, it became apparent that there was a strong possibility I might not be able to recover the spacecraft if I used consumer electronics for telemetry (cell phone, SPOT, Garmin, etc). These systems are known to lose GPS and/or cellular service at around 30,000 feet and would be required to re-establish those connections during descent. In many cases, connectivity is NOT re-established and the payloads cannot be located.
The alternate approach is to use amateur radio frequencies and leverage the Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS). This method is far more reliable and likely to maintain connectivity for the duration of the flight... I just had to get an amateur radio license and be willing to put a bit more effort into custom electronics. A bit of extra effort and cost is worth it to me in order to help ensure that I am able to retrieve the footage - the whole point of the project!
As of Saturday, November 23, 2013 I have passed the Technician Class exam and am awaiting my call-sign to be listed in the federal database.
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