Flight #T2000-1 "Persephone Test Flight"

Launch Date: May 20, 2000

May 20, 2000

In preperation for the Persephone flights we made our first tethered balloon flight today. Blaise and John G flew a 600g latex balloon tethered to the ground with 50 pound test braided nylon kite string. The string was controlled with a wooden kite-flying reel. The payload was a simplified bus holding only three vertical 35mm film cameras, servos to activate them, and a Stamp II microcontroller to trigger them. No ham radio equipment was on board.

Here is a rundown of the flight specs:

Launched from behind the RTC  building at around 8:00AM 5/20/00 
Winds: ~5mph; Cloud Cover:~50%
Carried stamp, servos, three cameras
Film: color 200 speed film

Estimated maximum altitude: 650 feet
Flight duration: 1 hour

Comments: one camera was damaged

Flight photos online here.

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