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ZL3AI > APRDIG 03.11.03 22:39l 87 Lines 4364 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: TAPR Digest, Nov 01, 5/5
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From: ZL3AI@ZL3VML.#80.NZL.OC
To : APRDIG@WW
Subject: Re: BalloonSat launch Saturday 01-NOV-03 Update
From: "Tim Cunningham" <tim_cunningham@mindspring.com>
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 2003 22:26:49 -0600
X-Message-Number: 41
Hey Scott,
Thanks for the interest and feedback.
Once we realized the students were flying a house today, it was too late to
change the parameters to correct the Icon. It will be a learning experience
for the next launch preparation.
We got some great ATV footage from the flight from Gary N4TXI who chased
and tracked the balloon. We also got some great APRS tracks that will be
posted later on my website at www.qsl.net/n8deu
Nobody got to see the landing today. The "A" Team was all ready for the
balloon to cross the last mountain, but it missed clearing the hill by about
200 feet or we would have probably caught it. Unfortunately, it landed in
a remote area that is highly inaccessible. We met a lot of wonderful people
out in the country and seen some beautiful scenery on the chase. We made
a lot of contacts and made some new friends as we talked to neighbors who
gave us great tips on how to reach the destination of the balloon payload.
We will get it tomorrow! We even had some hunters take one of our crew
members on an ATV 4-wheeler up the hill to get a closer look. He was
outfitted with a handheld GPS and a waypoint for the balloon from our last
GPS fix. They ended up climbing trees to get up the hill and decided there
had to be a better way and came back. We explained a reward was being
offered, but I suspect we will get there first tomorrow.
As we stood there talking to a native American, 3 vehicles zoomed passed
us. They were the other balloon chasers. I tried to flag them down but they
were on a mission until the they ran out of paved road. We caught them on
the way back, but I had to laugh as this vision of Twister crossed my mind
like the storm chasers on a mission to find the next tornado and a bunch of
vehicles go zooming down the road in a mad dash. It was a Kodak moment. The
balloon was only 1.2 miles from us on the other side of a big hill with
very thick brush.
But wait.... As it was getting dark the fun was just beginning. Bill
Brown, WB8ELK, picked up the beacon from a second balloon payload launched
30 minutes later with no APRS payload. It was about 2 miles from the APRS
payload we had been chasing. We heard the telemetry and went on a fox hunt.
It was behind a house in a tree. First, we had to get permission to cross
their yard and radio locate the package. Keep in mind it is very dark in
the country. They had a BIG "No Trespassing" sign in front of their yard.
Remember, we are out in the some rugged country where people do not visit
often. We found the second payload on the way out of that valley. It was 80
feet up in a tree. Great! How do we get it down? Well, we could see the
balloon in the tree. So Gary, N4TXI, hears a noise on the ground and the
RADIOSONDE is still pumping away near our feet. No need to climb in the
dark. The balloon stays and the payload goes home. I bet that High School
Senior was surprised to get a reward for helping us and he made sure we
paid on the promise. He was sure impressed by all the gadgets and gizmos we
were carrying. At least we looked important...
It has been a long day and everybody is tired. We have another fun day of
hiking along some fire trails tomorrow afternoon to recover the balloon we
chased today. Maybe we will be APRS portable on foot tomorrow in search of
the payload at 2pm CST. We know where it is, but we have to find a way to
get there. The payload is still beaconing this evening but nowhere in range
of a digipeater and blocked by several big steep hills... A long drive
around the mountain after dark confirmed the beacon was still going. It was
worth the trip to get that extra beacon for the landing site. I am still
amazed how well the rock in those hills has such a big RF choke on the
signal. You would think a 2 meter signal 1.2 miles away could be heard...
We had a great crowd today showing a high level of interest that we really
did not expect to see. It was great! An APRS balloon chase followed by a
successful fox hunt to retrieve a RADIOSONDE experiment. Does it get any
better?
Another balloon launches next week...
73's,
Tim - N8DEU
Huntsville, Alabama
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