Our Solar Explorer project was a success. We launched, were in the air during totality, and we recovered the payload. We are furiously consolidating and scrubbing the data and will have more posts to come soon, including a video of … Read More
Launch day is here!! Check out our tracker page to watch the progress and location of the balloon as it travel to 100,000 ft and back to earth. Here is today’s schedule: Launch – 10:47a MDT Eclipse first contact – … Read More
AUGUST 18, 2017 D4 Advanced Media Announces Partnership with Vertical Explorers to Launch Research Capsule into Upper Atmosphere to Record Solar Eclipse Reno, Nevada – D4 Advanced Media today announced a partnership with VerticalExplorers.com to sponsor and provide cameras for … Read More
Train Details We are using a 1200g balloon, which will have a 28′ diameter when it finally bursts. Our payload capsule, fully loaded with 2x SainSonic AP510 APRS tracker, 1x SPOT tracker, 10x GoPro cameras and the Rocketman 4ft parachute … Read More
As many may have heard, a rare celestial event is about to take place. Millions of people across the USA are traveling to the Path of Totality to witness what may be a From https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/ “On Monday, August 21, 2017, … Read More
I crunched some numbers today, and I estimate that troop 445’s balloon achieved 117,723 ft in altitude, and we know that Troop 252’s balloon achieved 114,667 ft! Great work, everyone! We learned a lot! We were able to determine that … Read More
The video is ready! Thanks again to Luke L. for putting this together!
Boy Scouts Troops 445 and 252 in Reno, NV are Launching 2 High Altitude Weather Balloons with 4K HD camera payloads into near-space (over 23 miles high) to capture stunning HD footage of the Earth! Join us at the launch … Read More
Good News! The current projections look favorable, though they will undoubtedly change slightly between now and launch time.We will be launching from the Virginia Foothills Park at 8AM Friday 4/10/15! Weather Forecast: Flight Prediction: Airspace Map:
Thanks to the “help” of the Davidson Academy STEM problem-solving class (they did all the work), we have solved the problem of gravity. Wait, that was last week . . . we have solved the problem of when to … Read More
Technically, a parachute would work at any height except beyond the atmosphere of a planet (i.e. in space). As proved by Felix Baumgartner, you can even fall from 120,000 feet. However, because of his weight, he had to let himself … Read More
To answer my own post, terminal velocity is the highest attainable speed (in one direction) of an object in free fall. Everything depends on the weight and shape of that object, and the direction it’s facing. Once an object reaches … Read More
Train Details We are using a 1600g balloon, which will have a 43′ diameter when it finally bursts. Our payload capsule, fully loaded with 1 SainSonic AP510 APRS tracker, 1 SPOT tracker, 2x Go Pro3+ cameras and the Rocketman 4ft parachute … Read More
What is it like at 120,000 feet high (23 miles)? It looks like this: First off, you would not be able to “feel” what it’s like that high above the earth. Your fragile human body would die in a … Read More
We’ve just entered our team as competitors in the Global Space Balloon Challenge (GSBC)! Our team name is BSA Vertical Explorers and we will be competing for highest altitude and best photograph. If you look at the gallery of photos from last … Read More
Today we spent a few hours re-envisioning and rebuilding v1 of the payload capsule. We built v1.1, smaller, lighter, and with dual cameras, woot! (Daft Punk song?!?) Here is an overview of the payload with APRS antennas sticking out the bottom. The … Read More
On Wednesday night, Troop 445 got together to begin construction on of the Payload Capsule. Primary Design Characteristics: Light Weight The lighter we can get, the higher we can go! Compact The more compact we can make this, the less … Read More
Credit for creating the Video goes to Luke L, a Scout who holds the Star rank from Troop 445! Special thank you to all of the adult BSA leaders who made this possible, and especially to Todd Tolbert and Dan … Read More