Brit amateur payload set to complete full circle around PLANET EARTH

It's a tip of the hat today to Brit High Altitude Ballooning (HAB) bod Leo Bodnar, whose B-64 payload is poised to complete an epic 25,000km circumnavigation of the globe. B-64 - comprising a 12g solar-powered radio tracker rig - lifted off on 12 July from near Silverstone, Northamptonshire. Its most recent position showed it …

[stsr505089]

25000 km is definitely space, 25,000 m is about right for a balloon.

[No, I will not fix your computer]

Ahhh... the old "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" misunderstanding, just in the sky instead of under the water.

[Tom_]

Unless...

Maybe they're claiming it's 25,000km around the Earth.

Small world, innit?

[stsr505089]

Re: Unless...

Its me, getting old, the mind is going.......

[Lester Haines]

Re: Unless...

40,000km if it travelled the equator, but since it didn't, and the distance is around 28,000km at 45 degs latitude, 25k sounds about right to me.

[Anonymous Coward]

Pfffrrrtttt

It didn't even carry a pint of beer.

[Anonymous Custard]

Re: Pfffrrrtttt

Nor any race or creed of small plastic pilot...

I mean, where's the fun in that?

[JimmyPage]

I have to write *something*

as I need to express my delight as stories like this ->

[MyffyW]

99 Luftballons

Likewise, congratulations on circumnavigating the globe. Additional marks for not starting any further conflicts.

"Have you some time for me,

then I'll sing a song for you

about 99 balloons"

[Vortex]

Wunderbra!

Is B-64 going to circumnavigate the earth forever, or is there some kind of BRASTRAP technology to somehow permit recovery of the "gubbins"? If not, you missed a technology licensing opportunity.

[Lester Haines]

Re: Wunderbra!

A good question. I think It'll just continue its lonely wanderings until floating into history.

[Anonymous Coward]

Close call...

Judging by it's route over the Eastern Block it was bloody luck not to be shot down!

[stucs201]

Re: Close call...

Just imagine the trouble that would have been caused if it'd been B-52, not B-64 flying over certain countries.

[Lionel Baden]

map looks wrong

its shifted left by about 25%

[Martin Budden]

Re: map looks wrong

Worse than that, it's upside down! This is how it should look.

[Lionel Baden]

Re: map looks wrong

Worthy of an upvote and a congratulatory comment :)

[Pete 2]

Just to make it interesting

What we need now is a race.

If yachts can mount round the world races, there should be scope for HAB-ers (?) to do the same. Hopefully at much lower cost.

[Lester Haines]

Re: Just to make it interesting

That's a fine idea, assuming everyone launches from the same point at the same time. Hmmmm...

[Anonymous Custard]

Re: Just to make it interesting

And a suitably large forest to land in... ;-)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Just to make it interesting

Hmmm, you mean some kind of high-alitude, high-tech, trans-continental game of poo sticks?

[no-one in particular]

Re: Just to make it interesting

Pooh Sticks may be more socially acceptable.

[John Brown (no body)]

Re: Just to make it interesting

Upvoted because you made I larf.

Visions of large turds floating through sky has serious overtones of Monty Python.

[synonymous cowherd]

way to go

Have a very large beer on us

[MaXimaN]

Yay!

It's made it across the briny deep and is within striking distance of Penzance! the tracker is predicting a burst and landing not far from it's current position. I sincerely hope the tracker has miscalculated...

http://spacenear.us/tracker/?filter=B-64

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Yay!

The burst predictions are for latex balloons, this is a foil balloon so the prediction algorithm doesn't apply here, just ignore it.

The question is how long will the battery / solar panels work for?

[Anonymous Coward]

Its made it across the Atlantic

Currently tracking South West of the Penzance and getting picked up by Irish APRS iGates.

http://spacenear.us/tracker/

http://aprs.fi/#!call=a%2FM0XER-4&timerange=604800&tail=604800

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Its made it across the Atlantic

My post took too long to be approved/uploaded, someone else bet me too it.