Project Phoenix

A 14-year old, his father, and a dream. This is my personal blog, but it's 90% Pheonix devellopment.

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Best. Omegle. Conversation. Ever.

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Really! I swear!

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*Under Construction*

   Well, as you can see, we've begun construction on the payload capsule. The payload rack  is a rack, of course, made of three 31x31 square honeycomb sheets arranged in a shelf-like configuration. They are, of course, held together by a long bolt running through each one of the corners. The shelves themselves are kept in place by bolts and washers. Equipment meant to be added to the payload is meant to be screwed/bolted to the honeycomb, the structure in question eliminating the need for the drilling of holes. The cameras will be able to see the exterior through portholes drilled in the side of the capsule. This, we will get to in a moment.

Obviously, such rack does not provide much protection from the elements. So, we built an box, or capsule, for it out of high-density construction styrofoam. This material was chosen partially for its durability, as well as its heat-retention capabilities. The joints are held together with polyethelene glue, as well as Tuck Tape (an extremely strong variety of construction tape). While the bottom is glued on, the top of the capsule is meant to be held in by friction alone. I'm sure that you'll be happy to know that it fits the rack like a glove.

   As you'll be keen to guess, blue does not stand out remarkably well against the sky. So, we plan to spray-paint the styrofoam capsule flourescent orange.

Stay tuned for pictures.

-Sebastien Bernier

Ps: I just realized the typo in the URL. Pheonix should be spelt as Phoenix.

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That reminds me. We just ordered our tracking unit! YAY!

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Two cameras please!

   Well, we've finally determined a camera arrangement. Once they come in, the Pheonix Project vehicle will have not one, but TWO onboard cameras; a GoPro video camera, and a Cannon PowerShot set to take still photos every few seconds. This will give us an optimum solution to the compromise between the smaller file sizes of a still camera, and the continuous filming of a video camera: Do both at once!

...By the way, since we can't be bothered to wait for the license, we're looking at ordering the tracker unit so that when my dad obtains his license, it can be ready for use immediately.

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Because my last post's image derped.

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Amateur radio, here I come!

   Well, it seems as if the amateur radio study guide we put on hold last week is available! Just got it from the library today! Next step : Take the exam, and get our license in order to buy and use the GPS transponder unit.

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Blog names...

   Well, it seems as if there's another blog with the same name as mine... Needless to say, it's one of those blogs that you wouldn't want your granny to see. When my friends happened upon it when searching for this blog... Well, I'll let your imagination do the rest.

-Seb

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Welcome to Project Pheonix

   Welcome, dear Tumblrnaut. You have travelled far, and have braved many dangers along your path. However, your journey is only beginning, for you are about to witness a great endeavour into near-space. So, without further ado, I welcome you to my little corner of the internet: Project Pheonix.

   This project has been ongoing for about 6 months, on and off. However, it has been advancing in leaps and bounds within the last few weeks. This is why I created this blog. To share this journey with you.

   Project Pheonix's main goal is to launch a small payload, a cube measuring about a foot and a half in diameter, aboard a weather balloon in order to capture video of the stunning view. This radiosonde, as it is known to the community, will be packed with electronic instrumentation during the flight, including two cameras; one still camera set to snap photos every minute or so, and a video camera, left to run throughout the flight. If all goes as planned, it will be ready to launch this summer.

Feel free to ask questions! They can only do good!