hey!

sorry for the late reply -- this forum has activity and then it dies later on -- it's also gone through different names and so forth in the past -- used to be called openship.net

but yeh, this forum is all about any DIY space projects -- right now that can be anything from weather balloon projects to amateur rocketry to whatever

basically the idea here is to try and get as many people who are working on stuff in their garages to share information, ideas, tools, etc..

originally with the openship idea -- the idea was to use open-source methodologies to build some sort of spacecraft, one group would work on communications while another might fabricate a piece of the structure

right now I'm just interested in getting the few of us out there together to group together

what are you doing or interested in doing? I'm mainly into weather balloons right now as there is actual  potential for us amateurs to accomplish something through them

welcome!

Hi there, I just registered, I was wondering what this site is all about. 

I take it this is a forum for strictly non-governmental spaceflight projects and ideas?  One of my favourite topics.

GPSL is in ~ 2 weeks! hope to meet some of you out there

this doesn't really belong in stratosphere -- I'll move it to a diff. board here soon but I thought it was really cool and wanted to show everyone

(Sorry, but you are not allowed to access the gallery)

Location: Columbia, MO -- Ahrens Steel & Welding Supplies‎

Tank	Volume	Price
S	135 cu ft	$66
K	244 cu ft	$102

the K tank requires a $300 (lifetime) deposit
while the S tank is a $240 (lifetime) deposit

hey all! let's compile a list of helium tank prices!

Wichita Welding 2005

Tank	Volume	Price
T	291 cu ft	$82
K	244 cu ft	$62
Unk	110 cu ft	$38
Unk	36 cu ft	$21

So I was under the impression that the longest time for most balloons and airships was around a day. Some of the post world war II airships apparently could survive for up to 200+ hours at a time!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N_class_blimp That's more than a week! Granted to do what a lot of us want to (build permanent stratospheric stations) we'll need to prove they can stay for months at a time but it's way better than 24 hours.

In comparison the Zephr has stood aloft for 82 hours and that is something to be proud of in it's own category.

Non commercial flight clocks in at 1,124 hours while commercial is at 23 hours.

Of course short of going to space NASA's scientific balloon, CREAM takes the cake at staying aloft for 42 days.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_endurance_record


anyways... these craft flying for a month or so at a time is good and all but we need one that will stay up there for years. Maybe we need a few challenges introduced?

found this sweet pdf from the AIAA on high altitude airship applications..

you should definitely check it out!

(Sorry, but you are not allowed to access the gallery)

I got the balloons today!!

They are 100 grams meaning the following: (roughly of course)

~ 80mm neck length
~ 45mm neck diameter
~ 160g of freelift
~ 200 m/min rate of ascent
~ 15k ft bursting height
~ 1800 mm bursting diameter

(Sorry, but you are not allowed to access the gallery)

Here's how to get your very own one FOR FREE (yes, free shipping as well).

1) If you don't have an account on diyship.com now is the time to sign up for one. Do that now.

2) Pick one of the following topics and write up something on it here on the forums. Post in whatever board you feel is appropriate. Doesn't need to be long or anything but should be more than a couple of sentences.

Topics

• Detail any upcoming mission that you are planning on doing involving near space or higher.
• Describe what activities you would persue if you had access to a stratosphere station.
• Describe various ways of making money to support missions into the stratosphere and beyond that could be persued by amateurs.
• Choosing from Titan, Europa, Mars, our Moon, or Callisto which body would you choose to either goto or send a probe to? What would be the mission?

3) PM me your post and your address and I'll ship you the balloon!

4) After you launch it or do whatever you are going to do with it come back and let us know what you did!

I realize that these balloons don't carry much payload and don't go very high but I think it will help people who are new to weather balloons to learn about them and inspire them to take more bolder plans. This is my intention.

So what are you waiting for!? Pick a topic, write it up and then let me know so I can send you very own weather balloon free of charge!

heads up everyone!!!

first annual hackerspaces in space competition is heating up this summer!!!

some rules:

             HACKERSPACES IN SPACE
                                 The First Annual Space Balloon Competition
                                  RULES AND GUIDELINES
                                                                                                                Image courtesy of Sable 3
                                              JUNE 1, 2010 - AUGUST 31, 2010
t e l e p h o n e : 7 0 8 / 8 7 2 - 7 6 6 7 • e m a i l : j a y @ w o r k s h o p 8 8 . c o m • w w w. w o r k s h o p 8 8 . c o m / s p a c e
                                         Caution/Disclaimer
                               (This is taken from the http://space.1337arts.com/ website)
Launching things into the stratosphere can be DANGEROUS! Please contact the FAA (or your
respective government body that regulates air traffic) before trying any launches (even if
they are under 4 lbs.) to make sure your vehicle won’t be entering restricted airspace and
PLEASE check the University of Wyoming’s Balloon Trajectory Predictor (or a similar website) to
make sure you balloon won’t be landing in the city/a populated area where it might cause
significant damage. Also, be sure to test your balloon’s terminal velocity for descent before
launching to make sure it’s within a safe range.
                                                 Competition
Rules
• One team per hackerspace. Any size build team, but only 10 people for the launch and retrieval team.
• Payload must be under 4 pounds (~1.814kg).
• Parts cost limit of $250.00. Must show receipts or have other proof of purchase.
• Payload must return with pictures taken from the flight.
• Only one official launch per team allowed. Notice of official launches must be given by 8 a.m., and a judge must be
  present for the launch to count.
• All local laws and ordinances must be followed throughout the entire competition.
• Balloon camera must take pictures of the curvature of the earth with black space backdrop (See cover page photo).
• The Event Board may judge any other conduct considered outside “the spirit” of the event and disqualify a team
  that does not adhere to it by majority vote.
Scoring
• Retrieval Time Based on time of balloon launch to recovery. Fastest gets 50 points, next gets 45, and so on.
• Weight of Payload 5 points added for every 1/2 pound under 4 lb.
• Cost of Setup Base: 50 points. 0.5 points off for every dollar over $150.
• Total Points Retrieval Time Score + Weight Score + Cost Score
Wo r k s h o p 8 8!                                                                             Hackerspaces in Space
                                                             1
Event Board & Judges
• Judges are members of each hackerspace, and will be submitted to the Event Board. They will ensure all rules are
  followed.
• One person from each hackerspace will be on the Event Board. The Event Board will oversee the event, judge each
  applicant, and declare winners.
Dates
• Competition starts immediately upon challenges going out.
• Teams will indicate acceptance of challenge by March 1, 2010 (either at workshop88.com/space, or the attached
  PDF form).
• Launches will be held between June 1, 2010 and August 31, 2010.
• Results of the official launch must be sent in by September 7, 2010.
• Winner will be announced on or before September 30, 2010.
Wo r k s h o p 8 8!                                                                         Hackerspaces in Space
                                                         

for more information please check out:

http://workshop88.com/space/