Exhibit Explores the Science, Power, and Beauty of Weather
Science and technology stories relating to humankind’s exploration of the weather are very interesting, and the immersive 2,000-square-foot “Weather Lab” that opened recently at the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, in New Mexico, gives visitors an inspiring view of the inextricable relationship between weather and humanity. The exhibit features several educational and interactive weather pods […]
Balloon-powered Internet Reaches Tens of Thousands in Hurricane-Hit Puerto Rico
X redesigns essential cell tower components by making them light and durable enough to be carried by a balloon 20 km up in the stratosphere. (All photos courtesy of Project Loon) Two weeks after Hurricane Irma slammed into the Caribbean islands, Maria, a category 4 hurricane, devastated Puerto Rico on September 20th, and knocked out […]
From Near Space, 100 Balloons with Cameras to Send Video of Eclipse
21 Aug, 2017. Photos of different eclipse stages taken by telephoto lens (All photos courtesy of Kelly Gorham/Montana State University) NASA, and its video platform Stream, will launch 100 balloons attached to cameras that will soar 100,000 feet above the Earth’s surface to provide us with live aerial footage of the solar eclipse on Monday, […]
Leak Causes Scientific Balloon and Space Observatory Payload to Sink in Pacific Ocean
A leak in a stadium-sized scientific balloon forced NASA flight controllers to bring it down in the South Pacific Ocean on May 6th. The super-pressure balloon (SPB) and its space observatory payload, worth several million dollars, have sunk to the bottom of the Pacific, about 321km south of Easter Island, with no chance of recovery. […]
A Recreational Flight to Space in a Modern Balloon?
Ready for the thrill and challenge of a journey to the edge of space? All you need is $75,000 to reserve a seat and a mindset to float up to 100,000 feet under a balloon and enjoy the spectacular views. Among other magnificent panoramas, these vistas include the blackness of space, the starscape above, the […]
NASA Launches Giant Scientific Balloons in Antarctica
The Boron And Carbon Cosmic rays in the Upper Stratosphere (BACCUS) payload takes flight Nov. 28. Credit: NASA NASA launched its large zero-pressure balloon on November 28 with instruments and payload that will observe cosmic rays and chemicals and atoms that make up the interstellar space between stars. The balloon—as large as a football stadium […]
NASA Seeks Student Experiments for Edge-of-Space Balloon Flight
NASA is accepting applications now through Dec. 16 from graduate and undergraduate university students to fly experiments to the edge of space on a scientific balloon. Students and professors interested in applying are invited to participate in a Nov. 11 teleconference. Scientific balloon– High-Altitude Student Platform Payload. Credits: NASA/Alan Haggard Up to 12 student teams […]
Student Experiments Flying High Over New Mexico
Students launched an 11.8 million-cubic-foot scientific balloon (about the size of 58 blimps) carrying a total payload of one ton over New Mexico on September 1. The balloon carried 12 student experiments to the near-space environment and flew at an operational altitude of 120,000 feet on a mission that lasted several hours. Some students from […]
Giant Balloon Soars into the Stratosphere to Study Sun
A helium balloon, as big as a football field, was launched towards the stratosphere above Antarctica on 19th January 2016. It carries instruments to study the extremely high-energy particles released by solar flares—information that will help scientists pinpoint the processes that set off these explosive events. The giant balloon will ride the winds around the […]
NASA Flies Two Football-Stadium-Size Balloons in Antarctic Anticyclone
While winter is upon us here, it’s summertime in Antarctica—time for NASA’s globetrotting balloon team to launch their scientific balloons, during this period, when anticyclones form in Antarctica. An anticyclone is a weather phenomenon characterized by high atmospheric pressure at its center, around which air slowly circulates in a counterclockwise pattern in the southern hemisphere […]
