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This is the one we really lost…the reward is still out.

Oregon State University and Portland State University teamed for a Joint high-altitude balloon launch for the NASA Oregon Space Grant Consortium (OSG) for Sheridan Middle School in Sheridan, Oregon. The entire student body attended as 12 of their best little experiments were tied to the two balloons and let go for the ride. After the cheers and best wishes the chase was on to retrieve the student experiments back from the limits of the atmosphere to their student owners at the middle school for what’s known as data analysis. Bummer it didn’t work out that way for the PSU-launched balloon. This is why.

Right off the bat we realized we were in for a drive when the balloon hit a ground speed of 112mph while we were just getting on the highway. The balloon had already crossed north over the Columbia River while we were stuck in traffic in King City. Anyway, the balloon changed course (see trajectory) and headed straight up. After a wrong turn or two, we finally caught up in southern Washington and all was just fine. But, yes, we lost contact. We are certain now that our slow rise rate kept us in the air for over 3.5 hours and our radio battery died on descent at 14,400 ft (descending at 3400ft/min), moving north at 15mph  just east of TumTum Mountain near Mt. St Helens. That's approximately 4 minutes before it hit the ground. And that's just hard luck because this area is dense (see pics).

Here are the stats we know:
• Around 90 miles total crow flies ground distance
• Max elevation 104,232ft
• Maximum ground speed 112mph,
• average rise rate 587.6ft/min
• average descent rate 3701ft/min (3282ft/min at end)
• Time to burst 177min
• Total time before lost 200.7min
• Total estimated time of powered operation 244.7min (that's over 4 hours, includes delay time on ground ~35min)--it is most likely that radio battery died after 4 hours of operation

This is what has happened since that fateful day...

Thursday, May 25: LPSU (Nathan, Donovan, Jennifer, Jules, Guy, Pete, Mark) combs the logging roads along NW (45deg) trajectory from last know position (Weyerhauser lets us use their roads so long as we lock their gate when we leave)

Sunday May 28: Donovan and Matt revisit area under suspicion (and data) that parachute was turning Northward. Found large clear-cut in assumed flight path and checked it out on foot. no cigar.

Monday May 29: Pete, Mark, and Bridgett scan area in two vehicles. Mark and Bridgett climb/bushwack bluff overlooking clear-cut and both sides of valley while Pete widens clear cut search. No cigar. Most roads north and west are driven, searched, and outlooks used to scan across the valley with binoculars. No cigar. Did I say that already? Kids smoking water pipes and firing AK47s just north of our position add to the adventure. Drove back out of the canyon and went to the fellow's house who owns part of TumTum Mountain--the guy with the key to the access road. He was not home but his neighbor was happy to run Pete up the little volcano on an ATV with the binoculars for more scanning of the canopy. No cigar. None. On the way home Pete went to Cougar to check on Helicopter prices (the guys who fly folks over Mt. St Helens are nearby) while Bridgett and Mark drove up to the mountain to take pictures at sunset, but wound up getting soaked again pulling a 4x4 out of a snowfield with one of the climbing ropes.

Wednesday May 31: Michael Hemel, a ham (KB7WUK) unaffiliated with LPSU was paying attention to our journey over the web, visits the site and looks around too and lets us know. Cool, but no cigar.

Two further trips were made by Mark, Bridgett, and Matthias via Ape caves and Mark, Donovan, and Matthias 4-wheeling over bungee bridge with great views of the area but no cigars. I’ve given up.

The story, data, and everything was posted to a geocache site which got some more folks searching for the thing, but no hardware. The story, the good cause (Sheridan students), the $250 reward added incentive but the region is so dense I'm afraid we have only to hope that someone gets lucky and returns it to us by mail. It is thick and steep in there, and a local told us he thought that was the worst place for it land in the region. However, unless the control box is upside down or an animal inhabits it, everything LPSU should survive being outside for months--including the data—but not years. I don't know about the student experiments though.

For treasure seekers…here are the final stats at the last transmission

time 5/25/06    elevation   latitude        longitude        course    speed    descent rate
12:08:44          14665ft     45.56.17N   122.18.68W    6deg     15mph    3282ft/min

There is still a reward (~250$) to recover the thing.

Maybe next time? See you!