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Balloon-cargo contest

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Anybody can enter this contest: Be the first to document taking a 1 metric tonne cargo up to at least 30km above the equator, thereabouts, by balloon and returning images of it to earth. Contestants must supply the means to lift the cargo by balloon (cargo straps will be provided by the contest) to the location and provide the images of it within hours (not more than a day) after mission completion. Mission completion is within a few hours after reaching the desired coordinates. Images are both HD pictures and HD video: first, a steady shoot of HD pictures of the balloon. These images are to be of good quality, of accurate color, at a frame rate no less than one per hour [EDIT frame rate down to minute], from each perspective: below-up, side-in and top-down, where the entire balloon is in the picture but taking up no more than 25% of the frame. Pictures are again of good quality, in focus (the background is in focus, as well) and clearly visible. Second, two steady streams/recordings of HD video, one shot down and the other shot out sideways from the balloon, capturing the earth and the horizon, respectively. Remuneration/Prizes for winners is the presenting of several T-shirts commemorating the contest and 100% of any media rights, advertising and etc, up to the first 100k USD, then 50% thereafter.
Sir_Misspeller, Jun 01 2011

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       Contest have a purpose if they stimulate new thinking on a particular issue. This just asks you to do more of what hundreds of people are doing now, except the FAA and several other organizations won't let you as it exceeds the maximum weight limit allowed so force entrants to fill out lots of paperwork. All this would do is stimulate the mass production of large balloons. It is also possible that this test has already been completed by the US government as they send a bunch of big things up over the poles like telescopes.   

       A better contest would be a max altitude, max distance, max duration or minimum weight with recovery.   

       (-)
MisterQED, Jun 01 2011
  

       you need a catchy name.
WcW, Jun 01 2011
  

       Maybe not, [Sir_Misspeller] has a certain ring to it.
8th of 7, Jun 01 2011
  

       [MisterQED], You are correct, I should have required all the entrant-balloons be reusable, entirely avoiding non-reusablness. As for the US governments' interest in being the first applicant. Well, they need to handle their own paper work and launch my cargo over the equator... or no T-shirt!   

       [WcW], you are correct. I have a few in mind
Sir_Misspeller, Jun 01 2011
  

       So many [mfd]'s so little time.   

       echo of [MB]'s N-prize, except I assume that [SM] isn't actually organizing the contest.   

       baked in the many articles that describe using LTA craft to lift stuff.   

       redundant with another post that postulates using LTA craft for logging (where an individual tree trunk would weigh a tonne easily)
FlyingToaster, Jun 01 2011
  

       Ooh, I might be able to do this one.
Let's see, if force equals mass times accelleration, then 1 metric tonne of cargo falling 30km would be 30000 meters at 1 meter per second squared and the size of the crater it would make would be...
uh
No, nope I lost it.
  

       I'm going with big.   

       It will have 294 MJ of potential energy, which corresponds to 62œ kg of TNT, if that helps.
spidermother, Jun 02 2011
  

       Why does the contest supply only cargo straps? [-]
Alx_xlA, Jun 02 2011
  
      
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