Ground shot of liftoff of the balloon and payload.
The conception of the MABEL 1 Balloon project occurred in January of 2000. The actual launch took place on November 5, 2000.
The MABEL 2 launch and recovery event will be covered here on the USECA Web! Watch for updates on launch re-scheduling!
The USECA Organization approved the funds to help get the MABEL 2 project off the ground. Literally. The grant from USECA will purchase the helium, the latex balloon, and the batteries for the project, which are the non-recoverable items.
The MABEL 2 launch was tentatively scheduled for October or November of 2001. Since the September 11 tragedy however, getting the FAA approval is proving difficult. However that has changed now as the project is moving forward again.
The successful recovery of the entire MABEL 1 electronics, The original MABEL 1 Payload will be used, with some refinements and improvements. Pictured below are the original MABEL 1 components.
Launch site near Bannister, Michigan. 43
deg 10.84' by 84 deg 21.72'. 1200 gram balloon. 6 pound payload. beacon on
144.34
with atv announcement. ATV on 439.250.
MABEL 2 will be packed with instruments and transmitters, and the telemetry will be gathered by the ground stations, and recovery teams. Each team will have a video crew to capture the entire experience on tape.
Screen shot of payload down-pointing camera at liftoff
Screen shot of horizon-pointing camera at 93,375 feet!
The project crew. From left to
right are Chris Oesterling (N8UDK) Jeff Basting (N8QPJ) and Phil
Manor (W8IC)