Posted on 01/27/2012 10:45:27 AM PST by Razzz42
A challenge usually left to NASA eggheads or PhD students was conquered by two Toronto teenagers earlier this month when Mathew Ho and Asad Muhammad sent a Lego-manned flight capsule into space.
The two 17-year-old Agincourt Collegiate Institute students completed their year-long mission two weeks ago, successfully sending a balloon carrying a Lego man and a small Canadian flag out of earth's atmosphere.
The unit was launched from a park near Ho's east-end home and ascended 80,000 feet before the balloon popped. The Lego man and his cargo fell safely to earth, with the help of a homemade parachute, where it landed in a Peterborough field...
(Excerpt) Read more at toronto.ctv.ca ...
80,000 feet is by no means out of the atmosphere.
80,000 feet is still in the stratosphere.
What are they talking about, “Launched into space?”
Had it actually gotten out of the atmosphere (even just barely), it would have accelerated at an extraordinary rate with no wind resistance (32 ft/(secXsec)). Plastic melts and I’d be surprised if a parachute would have worked.
80K ft is very high. But let’s not get carried away.
Lego Joe Kittinger ping
It would be considered ‘near space.’
I watched the video, and the provider’s comment there states “near space”.
—80,000 feet is by no means out of the atmosphere.—
True, but whenever I go that high I might as well be holding my breath, ‘cause not only is there not a lot of air, but it’s danged cold!
And one time I got smacked by this little piece of Mars, I think.
BFD
Hams have been doing this for years and recently set a record:
http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-balloon-flight-crosses-atlantic-sets-records
Umm, "into space" could mean a lot of things but it does not mean "outer" space. In outer space there is no air there and balloons do not float.
Doesn’t someone need to worry about this entering commercial airspace? Would they need to talk to air-traffic control before doing something like this?
Not long ago (11DEC2011) the California Near Space Project launched a latex weather balloon which traveled from California to the Mediterranean Sea northeast of Algiers, Algeria. It stayed between 105,000 and 115,000 feet during that time. It is the first known transcontinental, transatlantic, international amateur balloon flight.
More details here.
http://www.californianearspaceproject.com/flights.cnsp-11.html
“Hams have been doing this for years” brought visions of that stupid Geico pig squealing into space to mind and that is just about where I would like to send him! :))
I’m glad to see this sort of thing. At least some kids have higher aspirations than the next level on a video game.
They should have attached a rocket to the capsule so after the balloon popped it could have lit off and really taken it into space.
“Doesn’t someone need to worry about this entering commercial airspace? Would they need to talk to air-traffic control before doing something like this?”
No, as long as you keep the payload weight under six pounds for a single payload. If you choose to tie together multiple payloads on one balloon you can lift up to 12 pounds total with no one individual payload weighing more than six pounds.
If you go higher than these limits you’ll need to file an FAA form to request a waiver for the flight.
Video of balloon fill and launch of record breaking trans-Atlantic flight.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3I9T7zDZaFQ
Free democrat rides!!
See space from a lawn chair!!!
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