K4HSM
06-02-2007, 06:00 AM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 29, 2007
Who: University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club (UTARC) and the Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville (RACK)
What: UTARC UX-14 High-Altitude Balloon Launch
When: Saturday, June 9, 2007 - Time: 9:30 AM Eastern Time
Where: Knoxville Hamfest and Electronics Exposition, Kerbela Temple, 315 Mimosa Avenue Knoxville, TN
Why: Demonstration of technology used to launch and recover high-altitude balloons as well as to videotape flight for replay later at the Hamfest if recovered in time.
The University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club (UTARC) in cooperation with the Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville (RACK) will conduct a high-altitude balloon launch on Saturday, June 9, 2007 during the 41st Annual RACK Hamfest at the Kerbela Temple in Knoxville, Tennessee. Launch is currently scheduled for 9:30 AM Eastern Time.
The payload, nicknamed “Eye in the Sky” will contain a video camera that will record the entire flight from lift-off to landing and recovery. This payload is planned for return to the Hamfest in time for replay to the attendees.
Along with a video camera, a 2-meter transceiver and 70cm beacon will be placed on board for tracking in real-time. A GPS receiver will provide telemetry to the transceiver and to an APRS (Automated Position Reporting System) controller that will send coordinates back to ground stations working to intercept and recover the payload after its decent from altitudes exceeding 50,000 feet (weather and prevailing winds permitting).
ABOUT UTARC: The University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club is celebrating it’s 60th year of operation. UTARC has been launching high-altitude balloons since May of 2005 and their missions have been featured in Make magazine, or publications and the tech web site Slashdot. This launch will be the 14th balloon launch for UTARC. Their balloon missions have taken them as high as 116,000 feet. The payload radio transmissions have been heard as far away as Vancouver, BC and the Caribbean. This year’s balloon launch will mark the 2nd year UTARC has launched from the Hamfest.
ABOUT RACK: The Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville is celebrating its 41st year of hosting the RACK Hamfest, an annual gathering of amateur radio operators and electronics enthusiasts to buy, sell, and trade amateur radio equipment and participate in seminars dedicated to the amateur radio hobby. The Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville was founded in the 1950s and has served the residents of East Tennessee in times of emergency and public service during its years in operation.
ABOUT THE RACK HAMFEST: The 41st Annual RACK Hamfest and Computer Exposition will be held at the Kerbela Temple in South Knoxville near Baptist Hopsital. This year’s hamfest marks the 2nd consecutive year that the hamfest has been held at Kerbela Temple. Along with the hamfest, the Tennessee section of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) will conduct its state convention at this year’s event. Various forums including demonstrations of satellite communications, astronomy, HF communications, and youth activities are scheduled.
More information on the web:
UTARC: http://www.utarc.org
RACK: http://w4bbb.org
For additional information, please contact Greg Williams, UTARC, at 865-588-9252; or David Bower, Hamfest Director, at 865-690-8360 (e-mail at d.bower@ieee.org)
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May 29, 2007
Who: University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club (UTARC) and the Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville (RACK)
What: UTARC UX-14 High-Altitude Balloon Launch
When: Saturday, June 9, 2007 - Time: 9:30 AM Eastern Time
Where: Knoxville Hamfest and Electronics Exposition, Kerbela Temple, 315 Mimosa Avenue Knoxville, TN
Why: Demonstration of technology used to launch and recover high-altitude balloons as well as to videotape flight for replay later at the Hamfest if recovered in time.
The University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club (UTARC) in cooperation with the Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville (RACK) will conduct a high-altitude balloon launch on Saturday, June 9, 2007 during the 41st Annual RACK Hamfest at the Kerbela Temple in Knoxville, Tennessee. Launch is currently scheduled for 9:30 AM Eastern Time.
The payload, nicknamed “Eye in the Sky” will contain a video camera that will record the entire flight from lift-off to landing and recovery. This payload is planned for return to the Hamfest in time for replay to the attendees.
Along with a video camera, a 2-meter transceiver and 70cm beacon will be placed on board for tracking in real-time. A GPS receiver will provide telemetry to the transceiver and to an APRS (Automated Position Reporting System) controller that will send coordinates back to ground stations working to intercept and recover the payload after its decent from altitudes exceeding 50,000 feet (weather and prevailing winds permitting).
ABOUT UTARC: The University of Tennessee Amateur Radio Club is celebrating it’s 60th year of operation. UTARC has been launching high-altitude balloons since May of 2005 and their missions have been featured in Make magazine, or publications and the tech web site Slashdot. This launch will be the 14th balloon launch for UTARC. Their balloon missions have taken them as high as 116,000 feet. The payload radio transmissions have been heard as far away as Vancouver, BC and the Caribbean. This year’s balloon launch will mark the 2nd year UTARC has launched from the Hamfest.
ABOUT RACK: The Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville is celebrating its 41st year of hosting the RACK Hamfest, an annual gathering of amateur radio operators and electronics enthusiasts to buy, sell, and trade amateur radio equipment and participate in seminars dedicated to the amateur radio hobby. The Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville was founded in the 1950s and has served the residents of East Tennessee in times of emergency and public service during its years in operation.
ABOUT THE RACK HAMFEST: The 41st Annual RACK Hamfest and Computer Exposition will be held at the Kerbela Temple in South Knoxville near Baptist Hopsital. This year’s hamfest marks the 2nd consecutive year that the hamfest has been held at Kerbela Temple. Along with the hamfest, the Tennessee section of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) will conduct its state convention at this year’s event. Various forums including demonstrations of satellite communications, astronomy, HF communications, and youth activities are scheduled.
More information on the web:
UTARC: http://www.utarc.org
RACK: http://w4bbb.org
For additional information, please contact Greg Williams, UTARC, at 865-588-9252; or David Bower, Hamfest Director, at 865-690-8360 (e-mail at d.bower@ieee.org)
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