Category Archives: Near Space

DIY space, Near Space, Space participation

JP Aerospace update on Ascender airship

JP Aerospace makes progress on their latest Ascender airship prototype: Ascender 26 – JPA Blog –

The Ascender 26 airship is moving forward in leaps. We’ve built a external stiffener frame out of carbon tubing. We did an inflation last weekend to verify it’s position.

Paul_Ascender26Larger image

And Building Away – JPA Blog –

Last night we continued sewing frame sleeves on the Ascender 26. The team also repackaged our main flight controller into the Ascender 26 configuration. We did two shock tube firings, both at mach 2.2 and lastly we flipped over the submarine in order to mount the magnetic drop weight system.

Education, Near Space, Space participation

Video: SciTech Kids film featuring Pongsats shown in the White House

A short film made by 8 year olds Gabrielle Nafie and Miles Pilchik about the SciTech Kids program was shown in the Student Film Festival at  The White House. The film included a segment about the Pongsat experiments their class sent to the “edge of space” with the help of JP Aerospace:

Education, Near Space, Space participation

JP Aerospace sale on flights of MiniCubes to NearSpace

John Powell of JP Aerospace sends me a notice of their sale on flights of the Minicubes to high altitudes on their balloon and airship missions :  MiniCube Flights on Sale! – JP Aerospace Blog –

minicube_sale2mPhoto of MiniCubes in flight at 100,000 feet.

A MiniCube is a payload container for people to fly their projects on our high altitude balloons and airship missions.

MiniCubes can be used for research, commercial applications, art, inspiration or anything you can imagine.

Run your own space program!

The MiniCube is small plastic box five cm on a side. On the base is a standard camera tripod mount. You put your project inside the cube and mail it to JP Aerospace. We carry it to the edge of space on a high altitude balloon then send it back to you.

MiniCube and flight all included price: regularly $320 now on sale for $270

Flights available April 26th and September 27, 2014

Sale ends March 12th 2014.

minicubes

When you purchase a MiniCube you will get a MiniCube and a flight. After the flight your MiniCube will be returned to you along with a data sheet about the mission and a CD with images and video from the flight.

  • MiniCube Home Page
  • MiniCube Store
  • JP Aerospace Home Page
  • MiniCube on facebook

The next MiniCube mission: High altitude balloon flight to 100,000 feet, April 26, 2014

Thank you,

John Powell
President
JP Aerospace, America’s OTHER Space Program

Education, Near Space, Space participation

Global Space Balloon Challenge

Here’s an announcement from the Stanford Student Space Initiative:

Global Space Balloon Challenge

Ever wanted to build something and send it to space? The Stanford Student Space Initiative and the Michigan Balloon Recovery and Satellite Testbed team invite you to the Global Space Balloon Challenge (GSBC)! The GSBC is an international education outreach project to encourage people from around the world to build and launch their own high altitude balloons- teams from 12 countries from 6 continents have already signed up!

Between April 18 – 21, 2014, teams from all over will launch balloons to the edge of space, recover them, and share the photos and data that they have collected.  No prior building experience is required – the project is targeted at new and experienced hobbyists alike – and GSBC organizers will guide you through every step of the process. The goal is to encourage people of all ages to get their hands dirty building their own space hardware, and to promote the spirit of hardware hacking and international STEM collaboration. For more information head to http://www.balloonchallenge.org/.

Near Space, Space Collecting, Space participation

Photos to Space: “Astro Corps – Join the Adventure!”

Photos To Space, a HobbySpace sponsor, introduces their new Astro Corps team:

Astro Corps – Join The Adventure!
Send Your Photo To Space With Our Astro Corps Team.

flight prep_1080_4Countdown To Liftoff!
On September 22, 2013, Photos To Space will launch the first Astro Corps flight to the edge of space. You can be a part of this historic adventure. Just upload your photo using the form below and follow along as we countdown to our first Astro Corps flight.

 

 

 

Who’s Flying On Such A Mission?Group_01_150
Three brave souls have been selected to fly on this historic mission: Gene, the plucky American; Yuri, the hot shot Ukrainian and Riley, a smart scientist from Australia. Each of our explorers has been dreaming of the day when they can go to space. But who are they? They come from different backgrounds but all bring a passion for space. Read More about them on the Astro Corps Bios page.

 

Learn More About The Flight.Space - The Future
What does it take to get to the edge of space? The team is flying on the ‘Away Mission’ vehicle. Flown by JP Aerospace, this craft is a well know and trusted design having flown numerous times before.

The vehicle should fly to almost 20 miles before the systems return it safely back home. Your photo will be kept safe with our Astro Corps crew during the entire flight.

 

Sign Up Today!

To get started on your adventure just pick a photo and fill out the flight form. You will receive an email welcoming you to the team.

Certificate of Flight
When the mission is over, we will look through the data and create certificates of participation including all of the details of your Astro Corps mission. We’ll include information such as how high the vehicle went, how fast it traveled and what the cameras saw during the flight.

Sign up today and experience the adventure!
Hurry. This flight closes on September 15th at 11:59pm Eastern Time.

A SpacerGuild Activity
In addition to sending your photo, this flight earns you SpacerGuild points. More info about this wonderful program will be coming soon!

Continue to the flight form…