Nasa 0, guy with ballon and duct tape: 1

CptStern

CptStern

suckmonkey
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It all sounds very Heath Robinson but a digital camera, a GPS device, some duct tape and a balloon were all that was needed to take some breathtaking pictures of Earth that had Nasa calling.

Robert Harrison, 38, used a collection of cheap parts costing £500 to create a balloon-mounted camera that can travel up to 21.7 miles (35km) above the surface of the Earth. The result is a series of pictures taken from a height that only a rocket or weather balloon can reach. Mr Harrison, an IT director from Highburton, West Yorkshire, has launched 12 high-altitude balloons (HABs) since 2008.

“A guy phoned up who worked for Nasa who was interested in how we took the pictures,” Mr Harrison told The Times. “He wanted to know how the hell we did it. He thought we used a rocket. They said it would have cost them millions of dollars.”
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nasa: stop thinking so much it's costing you millions

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/space/article7074839.ece
 
they use all that money for vibrating bathubs,10% spend on the projects
 
Helium-balloon_2__701051a.jpg


Not bad.

earthrise-1.jpg


Better.
 
but that last shot is of the moon ..it just happens to have the eath in the background. pretty sure you cant float a balloon to the moon. NASA: 0, guy with Duct tape: 1
 
Duct tape balloon - £500

Apollo program - $20 billion
 
Polaris said:
Duct tape balloon - £500

Apollo program - $20 billion
Click to expand...

plus the man had DUCT TAPE! (he's one of us!!!)

I bet the eggheads at Nasa dont have duct tape! NOOOO they have that silvery reflective crap that costs $7000 a square foot!!!
 
CptStern said:
plus the man had DUCT TAPE! (he's one of us!!!)

I bet the eggheads at Nasa dont have duct tape! NOOOO they have that silvery reflective crap that costs $7000 a square foot!!!
Click to expand...

Well, they had one, that's how they saved Apollo 13...

My 3000th post, horray!
 
Polaris said:
Duct tape balloon - £500

Apollo program - $20 billion
Click to expand...

Coolness of balloon: A solid 8 out of 10.

Coolness of Apollo: 229.

but that last shot is of the moon ..it just happens to have the eath in the background. pretty sure you cant float a balloon to the moon. NASA: 0, guy with Duct tape: 1
Click to expand...
Okay then.
 
I was gonna say, there have been quite a few people doing this, and while impressive, comparing it to the slightest of what NASA has done is just silly.
 
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