New Space and Tech

Rensselaer Students Reach 89,777 Feet By Balloon

By Keith Cowing
April 8, 2013
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Rensselaer Students Reach the Edge of Space–and They Have a Video To Prove It

“Members of a student club at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have created a unique 360-degree video chronicling a weather balloon’s 89,777-foot ascent into space. The Rensselaer Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) club launched their high-atmosphere balloon in late January. Filled with condensed helium, the balloon carried a payload of three high-definition video cameras and GPS equipment. SEDS members retrieved the payload–which was carefully designed to withstand a significant impact–after the balloon popped at its peak altitude and fell to the Earth’s surface. All three video cameras were intact, and club members “stitched together” footage from the three perspectives into a single 360-degree video.”

SpaceRef co-founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.