Global Space Balloon Challenge

[Cynthia Chen]

AYAA Subscribers:

Please accept this as an invitation to participate in the Global Space Balloon Challenge (GSBC), an international education outreach project to encourage people from around the world to build and launch their own high altitude balloons.

Over a single weekend, teams from all over the world will launch balloons to the edge of space, recover them, and share the photos and data that they have collected.

Signups have been live for just over two weeks and we have registered more than 30 teams across 14 countries and 6 continents (see the website for a map of all current launch locations).

The initiative has also been featured on CNET<http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-57618165-76/the-skys-the-limit-with-global-high-altitude-balloon-challenge/> and Make Magazine<http://makezine.com/2014/02/04/send-your-creations-to-space-with-the-global-space-balloon-challenge/>.

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.

The organisers are still looking for more teams to signup from around the world! There's still plenty of time to get involved, and the great thing about high altitude balloons is that they can accommodate people from all skill levels.

Registered teams so far range from university students, to groups of friends, to scientific communities, and even elementary school students. A simple balloon might consist of a few sensors, while an advanced balloon might consist of altitude control, pointing control, a data collection system... the possibilities are endless!

By getting involved with the GSBC you will get to work on a project that is only as complex as you are comfortable working with, and will give you the perfect opportunity to learn new skills.Through the project, you'll also get the opportunity to communicate and collaborate with teams all around the world, as well get building advice from some of our many industry partners or experienced teams, for example the engineers from Google's Project Loon<http://www.google.com/loon/>.


For more information, including incredible photos of Earth taken on previous launches, check out the GSBC website at www.balloonchallenge.org or their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/balloonchallenge.

Regards,

Cynthia Chen

Australian Youth Aerospace Association Inc

E cynthi...@ayaa.com.au | W ayaa.com.au