Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this high altitude balloon thing for a while now, and let me tell you, it’s a wild ride. I saw some stuff online about sending stuff up to “near space” and I thought, “Why not?” Plus, I didn’t want to spend a fortune.
First off, I started gathering what I needed. The balloon itself was the easy part. Got a big one online, not too pricey. Then came the payload box. I just grabbed a sturdy styrofoam cooler from the garage. This would hold all the electronics.
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Bought a balloon.
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Found a cooler for the payload.
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Ordered a cheap GPS tracker online.
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Borrowed my friend’s old action camera.
Electronics: a learning curve
Next, I needed a way to track the thing. Picked up a cheap GPS module from one of those online electronics stores. Wiring it up was a bit of a headache, but I followed some online guides, and it all made sense. I also borrowed an old action camera from a buddy. Figured it would be cool to see what the view was like up there.
The helium situation
Helium was a whole other story. Turns out, you can’t just buy it anywhere. I called around to a bunch of party supply stores, and finally found one that would sell me a tank. It was more expensive than I thought, but hey, you gotta do what you gotta do. Filling the balloon was a two-person job, and let me tell you, that thing gets big!
Launch day jitters
I picked a calm day with no wind, like the internet said. You do not want to rush this. I double-checked all the connections, made sure the GPS was working, and strapped the camera in tight. With my heart pounding, I let the balloon go. Watching it ascend was amazing. It just kept going up and up, shrinking into the distance until I couldn’t see it anymore.
Tracking and recovery
Then it was all about tracking. I watched the GPS coordinates on my computer, fingers crossed. It went way higher than I expected! After a couple of hours, it started to descend. The parachute I attached (a crucial step, by the way) deployed perfectly, and the payload landed safely in a field about 50 miles away. Drove out there, followed the GPS, and there it was! A bit of a hike to retrieve it, but totally worth it.
All in all, it was an awesome experience. The whole thing probably cost me a few hundred bucks, but the thrill of sending something to the edge of space and getting it back? Priceless. If you have the time and a little patience you should do it!
