Which action cam should you pack into your payload?

With the entry of Gobandit into the market, there is now a wide choice of action cams to pack into your payload. Read more for the comparison…

Weather ballooning turns into a cartoon adventure

I’m trying to keep the ‘toys in space’ flights out of Balloon News but my son liked this so it made the cut.

What would the reverend have made of this?

Gobandit action camera put through it’s paces

Adam Cudworth’s HABE project puts a Gobandit action camera to the test. The new action camera display is very cool, but the cold fogs the lens. Read more…

Gobandit camera at launch

Gobandit camera at altitude

Bioprospecting in the Stratosphere

Bioprospecting in the Stratosphere

Oliver de Peyer and a team of molecular biologists are looking to sample stratospheric air for signs of microbial life which only inhabits the stratosphere. Read more…

UKHAS sets out to develop flight insurance for members

The UKHAS had their annual gathering in London yesterday. Various presenters and members gave talks topics including super pressure balloons, radio tracking, and bio prospecting in the biosphere. The meeting, full at its 50 participant capacity, also involved a discussion in which the topic of insurance for high altitude ballooning was discussed. The outcome of this section of the meeting was very interesting and now a groups will work on formalising UKHAS so it can offer it’s members ‘flight’ insurance. This comes after members expressed a general interest in insuring their launch and identified specific instances where payloads had landed on power lines.

 

UKHAS conference 2012

Balloon news will keep you up to date on their progress.

Mass weather balloon launch in August 2013

Balloon News has put an application into the CAA for a mass balloon launch in August 2013. The launch is currently planned for The Green Dragon pub, Buttington, Weshpool, Wales. Weather Balloon Fiesta 2013 is a ‘ not for profit event’ focused on getting balloonists together for a mass launch in a nice place. The event is planned for balloonists with the experience of at least one launch, though people interested in the hobby and event will be welcome to come and watch. I also anticipate it will be only open to helium launches as well for crowd safety. No Hydrogen.

Any comments or suggestions on planning the event are welcome.

The Green Dragon, Buttington

To register your interest please contact Chris at  chrishillcox1@hotmail.com or 07783903096

Automatic balloon release mechanism under development in Mexico

Automatic balloon liberation mechanism is a mechanism
to separate the parachute from the balloon and had been developed by Mr. David
Remba, a near space balloonists in Mexico. Read more…

Mechanism

A poorly shreaded balloon can cause chaos in your shroud lines

This launch in January shows the chaos a poorly shreaded balloon can cause in your shroud lines. Read more…

 

The Clarkson Near-space Balloon works on developing robust radio tracking payloads running on solar cells.

The Clarkson  Near-space Balloon works on developing robust radio tracking payloads running on solar cells.  http://k2cc.org/balloon/news/

Software engineers and Amateur Radio Club   enthusiasts from Clarkson            University’s K2CC are working on a project to improve the   functionality of  radio tracking payloads and capture photographs of the earth with geospatial            information. Read more…

The Contour HD. An alternative to the Go Pro Hero 2?

At last there is an alternative action camera to the Go Pro Hero that will survive the rigours of a trip to the Stratosphere. The Contour HD. Read more…

Contour HD