Here are photos from our near space balloon launch on May 10, 2003.  It was our first launch with Treasure Valley Near Space Program, and we had a great time.  (Thanks, guys!)

Launched from near Melba, Idaho and recovered at Black's Creek Reservoir.  The balloon reached a burst altitude of 75,600 feet. 

Since this was our first launch, we had lots to learn.  We started the day with a pre-launch meeting at the house of one of our members, which was a great way to get to know everyone a little before venturing out into the wilds of Idaho.  From there we headed out to the farm lands of Melba, Idaho.  Quite an interesting trip, with a long line of cars all heading out together into nowhere (or so it seemed).  A couple of wrong turns later (quite comical with such a long convoy of cars) and we were at our launch destination.  Launching late in the morning had allowed the winds to pick up, which necessitated the need for finding a wind block for the balloon.  The silos shown below fit the bill perfectly.  Unfortunately, the silos could have been just a bit bigger, and perhaps not surrounded by large red ant hills.  Awe, the challenges of science!  

   
Preparing the area

Filling the balloon

The filled balloon was an amazing site, dancing in the wind.  The payload for this trip included two capsules containing science experiments and an experimental radar reflector.   

    
Getting the stack ready                This flight had two capsules

   
Steadying the balloon against the increasing surface winds...

   
Finishing the capsules                  Starting the APRS tracking station

   
Almost ready...                           The radar reflector we launched

   
Up, up and away!                        A beautiful sight

Everything went together smoothly and by 11:00 a.m. was floating up above terra firma.  The chase was on!  My son ran our "command center" in the van while I drove, trying to keep from getting lost from the rest of the crew.  We had borrowed equipment from friends and  by halfway into the chase we had figured out how to make it all work.  From the van Chris could track the path of the balloon and it's speed, as well as the locations of other members of the crew.  How cool was that!

Midway into the chase we all met at Initial Point, south of Kuna.  The skies were very clear, and you could watch the balloon as it drifted overhead.  It was absolutely breathtaking.  As the balloon drifted into the jet stream, the chase was on again.  We watched it dance back and forth across the freeway and come to rest in a pasture near the Blacks Creek Reservoir.  We were able to drive right up to the recovery site.  A perfect end to a perfect day.

   
The recovery area                       The recovery team

One final look...