4 ms·

I sent a balloon to space and photographed Venus for under $200. Ask me anything

79 points by graffitishark 15y ago

adestefan 15y ago
"BTW, our balloon just missed a JetBlue aircraft while on its way to near-space. (It was still safe as we notified nearby airports of our launch)." Does that statement scare the bejesus out of anyone else?
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
- sukuriant 15y ago
  No. Define "just missed". Flying across country (Florida to Washington), I saw another plane flying in the other direction. The plane looked and felt like it was right next to us, like .. hundreds of yards apart. Cross-country planes do this all the time, so far as I can gather. [edit: fixed typo, added ending to sentence]
  - adestefan 15y ago
    I thought the same thing. Wondered if it was within the 3 mi/1000 mi box.
  - prawn 15y ago
    Probably fair to say that planes are under pilot control whereas the balloon was at the mercy of the winds, right?
  - kirubakaran 15y ago
    What you experienced is a "near miss" and it probably happened only because someone somewhere fucked up. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_miss_(safety) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_miss_(safety)
    - mikeash 15y ago
      In my opinion, it's far more likely that he greatly underestimated the distances between the two planes. People who aren't used to these things tend to see a few miles of separation as a few hundred feet instead. Airliners are big.
      - sukuriant 15y ago
        This is an incredible possibility.
- jonnathanson 15y ago
  Meh. It was for a good, innocent cause, and he says he took the trouble to notify nearby airports. I have much more of a problem with the legions of dumbasses out there shining laser pointers directly at passing aircraft.
  - nitrogen 15y ago
    I have much more of a problem with the legions of dumbasses out there shining laser pointers directly at passing aircraft. I think part of the problem is some of those people think that pointing a laser at something is just like pointing their finger at something, only easier to see. It's like, "Look, an airplane!" Except, to the airplane, your "finger" is like a giant eye-piercing needle. Calling them laser pointers and using them for presentations and stargazing probably helps conceal the fact that they're still lasers.
    - jonnathanson 15y ago
      True. The problem is that 99% of laser pointer owners don't really understand what a laser is or does.
- dkokelley 15y ago
  You can see the plane in the pictures on their website. It appears to be within a mile or two of the balloon. Notifying the airports is a good practice, and making the box radar-reflective is going out of their way to help make sure nothing bad happens.
  - Nick_C 15y ago
    Well, commercial airliners don't have radar that would necessarily pick it up. I must admit, I'm a little gob-smacked that he just launched without a clearance from the FAA, but I don't have a map of the airways there so perhaps it was outside controlled airspace. Even so... whew.
    - dkokelley 15y ago
      The radar is not for the planes. The controllers on the ground look at the big picture and direct traffic for appropriate separation requirements. It's their radar that would pick up the craft. Nobody actually gets "clearance" from the FAA. The administration sets the framework and guidelines for operation. This would fall under an unmanned aircraft of some sort, and would be subject to the airspace regulations it operated in. Believe it or not, hot air balloons actually have the right of way in any airspace since they are the most difficult to control.
      - Nick_C 15y ago
        The issue is that the FAA has a procedure for anyone who wants to launch a pilotless balloon (or rockets, etc) that involves getting pre-approval, then clearance on the day. It is to allow them time to issue the appropriate NOTAMs.
- towndrunk 15y ago
  Actually you need to notify the FAA not "near by" airports.
cryptoz 15y ago
30km up is not "to space". Not even "near space", if we take the Kármán line at 100km to be the generally agreed upon definition. The balloon is amazing and impressive but this headline is misleading.
- civilian 15y ago
  Look at the pictures: http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ For laymen, it's a pretty good definition of getting into space. And it sure looks like space!
matthiasb 15y ago
I really like their project. The pictures are amazing. Too bad we can't watch the video on their web site (http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/) from the US (This video contains content from EMI, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds. Sorry about that.)
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
mkelley82 15y ago
Wouldn't this be more appropriate on reddit's IAMA sub?
- mikerice 15y ago
  Yeah, that's what I was thinking. The site is a complete rip of a subreddit.
  - prawn 15y ago
    Hard to blame the operator for trying. AMA and /r/AskScience are both pretty strong candidates for spin-offs.
clobber 15y ago
Maybe it's my monitor, but I can't really see anything inside the circle in the Venus photo. This is a cool project though.
yaix 15y ago
Nice idea and cool pictures. Too bad instead of HD they are only in micro format and embedded into a flash. Or did I just not find them on the site?
chopsueyar 15y ago
Remind me of this one with the weather balloon and the iPhone: http://www.vimeo.com/15091562 http://www.vimeo.com/15091562
hammock 15y ago
Reminds me of the father and son who got to 30km (and recovery!) with nothing but an iPhone tied to a weather balloon - the video is amazing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtXquYhY7wo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtXquYhY7wo As others have said, sure as hell looks like space to me.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
eleitl 15y ago
Definition of space is 100 km (Karman Line). You did not send a balloon to space.

79 points by graffitishark 15y ago

"BTW, our balloon just missed a JetBlue aircraft while on its way to near-space. (It was still safe as we notified nearby airports of our launch)." Does that statement scare the bejesus out of anyone else?

deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
sukuriant 15y ago
No. Define "just missed". Flying across country (Florida to Washington), I saw another plane flying in the other direction. The plane looked and felt like it was right next to us, like .. hundreds of yards apart. Cross-country planes do this all the time, so far as I can gather. [edit: fixed typo, added ending to sentence]
- adestefan 15y ago
  I thought the same thing. Wondered if it was within the 3 mi/1000 mi box.
- prawn 15y ago
  Probably fair to say that planes are under pilot control whereas the balloon was at the mercy of the winds, right?
- kirubakaran 15y ago
  What you experienced is a "near miss" and it probably happened only because someone somewhere fucked up. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_miss_(safety) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_miss_(safety)
  - mikeash 15y ago
    In my opinion, it's far more likely that he greatly underestimated the distances between the two planes. People who aren't used to these things tend to see a few miles of separation as a few hundred feet instead. Airliners are big.
    - sukuriant 15y ago
      This is an incredible possibility.
jonnathanson 15y ago
Meh. It was for a good, innocent cause, and he says he took the trouble to notify nearby airports. I have much more of a problem with the legions of dumbasses out there shining laser pointers directly at passing aircraft.
- nitrogen 15y ago
  I have much more of a problem with the legions of dumbasses out there shining laser pointers directly at passing aircraft. I think part of the problem is some of those people think that pointing a laser at something is just like pointing their finger at something, only easier to see. It's like, "Look, an airplane!" Except, to the airplane, your "finger" is like a giant eye-piercing needle. Calling them laser pointers and using them for presentations and stargazing probably helps conceal the fact that they're still lasers.
  - jonnathanson 15y ago
    True. The problem is that 99% of laser pointer owners don't really understand what a laser is or does.
dkokelley 15y ago
You can see the plane in the pictures on their website. It appears to be within a mile or two of the balloon. Notifying the airports is a good practice, and making the box radar-reflective is going out of their way to help make sure nothing bad happens.
- Nick_C 15y ago
  Well, commercial airliners don't have radar that would necessarily pick it up. I must admit, I'm a little gob-smacked that he just launched without a clearance from the FAA, but I don't have a map of the airways there so perhaps it was outside controlled airspace. Even so... whew.
  - dkokelley 15y ago
    The radar is not for the planes. The controllers on the ground look at the big picture and direct traffic for appropriate separation requirements. It's their radar that would pick up the craft. Nobody actually gets "clearance" from the FAA. The administration sets the framework and guidelines for operation. This would fall under an unmanned aircraft of some sort, and would be subject to the airspace regulations it operated in. Believe it or not, hot air balloons actually have the right of way in any airspace since they are the most difficult to control.
    - Nick_C 15y ago
      The issue is that the FAA has a procedure for anyone who wants to launch a pilotless balloon (or rockets, etc) that involves getting pre-approval, then clearance on the day. It is to allow them time to issue the appropriate NOTAMs.
towndrunk 15y ago
Actually you need to notify the FAA not "near by" airports.

cryptoz 15y ago

30km up is not "to space". Not even "near space", if we take the Kármán line at 100km to be the generally agreed upon definition. The balloon is amazing and impressive but this headline is misleading.

civilian 15y ago
Look at the pictures: http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ For laymen, it's a pretty good definition of getting into space. And it sure looks like space!

matthiasb 15y ago

I really like their project. The pictures are amazing. Too bad we can't watch the video on their web site (http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/ http://www.thelimitisinfinity.com/) from the US (This video contains content from EMI, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds. Sorry about that.)

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

mkelley82 15y ago

Wouldn't this be more appropriate on reddit's IAMA sub?

mikerice 15y ago
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. The site is a complete rip of a subreddit.
- prawn 15y ago
  Hard to blame the operator for trying. AMA and /r/AskScience are both pretty strong candidates for spin-offs.

clobber 15y ago

Maybe it's my monitor, but I can't really see anything inside the circle in the Venus photo. This is a cool project though.

yaix 15y ago

Nice idea and cool pictures. Too bad instead of HD they are only in micro format and embedded into a flash. Or did I just not find them on the site?

chopsueyar 15y ago

Remind me of this one with the weather balloon and the iPhone: http://www.vimeo.com/15091562 http://www.vimeo.com/15091562

hammock 15y ago

Reminds me of the father and son who got to 30km (and recovery!) with nothing but an iPhone tied to a weather balloon - the video is amazing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtXquYhY7wo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtXquYhY7wo As others have said, sure as hell looks like space to me.

deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

eleitl 15y ago

Definition of space is 100 km (Karman Line). You did not send a balloon to space.