I wanted to share the following article that was published in the Rome Sentinel:

SUNY Polytechnic Institute students will launch a high-tech, high-altitude balloon from the Marcy campus Sunday, participating in a “Global Space Balloon Challenge.”

The SUNY Poly “Nanoballooners” will be one of 271 teams participating from 47 countries, according to a SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering announcement. The challenge involves “flying a high altitude balloon all the way to space and successfully bringing it back,” said SUNYCNSE.

After the launch between 9 and 10 a.m. Sunday, “the balloon will rise approximately 50,000 feet within the first two hours, before beginning its descent” which will be 50 miles east of the launch site, SUNYCNSE said. The balloon “will have multiple cameras, one experiment related to radiation sensitive electronic devices, a Geiger counter to monitor the radiation increase at high altitudes, and multiple redundant GPS systems to help with tracking,” the college said.

Participants will “not only learn lessons in science and engineering, but also teamwork and organization, essential for any career path,” SUNYCNSE added.

The Global Space Balloon Challenge includes students and teachers, amateurs and professionals, children and their parents, according to its website at www.balloonchallenge.org online. Various foundations and colleges are listed among its partners and sponsors.