Balloon Flight VWS-3

View from aloft: The Potomac River meets the Chesapeake Bay with the Eastern Shore in the background. Cape May, NJ is clearly visible. [large]

Payload Summary

• APRS on 144.39 MHz
  • WhereAVR APRS Controller
  • Garmin GPS-18 LVC
  • Yaesu FT-10R Trasmitter @ 1W
  • J-Pole Antenna
  • Aiptek Pencam SD Digital Camera (looking sideways)
  • 8 Energizer L91 Lithium AA Batteries

Flight Summary

VWS-3 was launched from Harrisonburg, VA at 9:55am on January 7, 2005. The balloon rose to an altitude exceeding 113,074 feet before bursting and returning to earth near Orange, VA, 51 miles from the launch site, at 12:21pm.

The payload was spotted descending under parachute just prior to landing. The payload proceeded to lodge itself amongst the branches of an 80-foot tall tree.

Six days after the launch, a brave rescue crew led by Ray Albers, K2HYD, John Transue, AF4PD, and archer-extraordinaire Bernie Stuecker, K4XY ventured back to the landing site to attempt a recovery (this after a failed mission earlier in the week). Equipped with bows and arrows, slightshots, spud guns and a rope saw, the team was able to cut off the branch snagging the payload. The payload fell most of the way to the ground where it became stuck again about 20 feet off of the ground. The team used a fallen limb to bring the payload the rest of the way down.

Flight Data/Telemetry

A log file containing combined telemetry from several receive sites is available for download here.

A complete Microsoft MapPoint file showing the complete track of the balloon is available here.

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