Project Horus sends Tux to (near) space!
As a part of the 2011 Linux.conf.au, we recently flew a payload carrying a plush tux to near space. Tux's flight was recorded in HD from launch to landing - a big thanks to Grant VK5GR who has put together a 2 minute extract of the flight for all to enjoy!
Tux himself is going to be auctioned off at the LCA Penguin Dinner on Thursday this week, with proceeds going to the Queensland flood appeal.
Update:
Tux was auctioned on the 27th of January, raising an amazing $23,239 (AUD) for the Queensland flood appeal! A big congratulations to everybody involved who helped make this possible, and many thanks to those who bid at the charity auction for their generosity.
Along with Tux the winning bidder received a giant poster sized print captured during the flight which had been signed by Mark Pesce, Eric Allman, Geof Huston, Vint Cerf & Linus Torvalds.
Mark and Joel with Tux & the signed print
Project Horus at LCA today!
I'm happy to announce that our friends Mark and Joel will be giving a talk about Project Horus & high altitude ballooning today at the 2011 Linux.conf.au (which is going ahead after all!) 
The talk is being held today at 1:30pm in S207 as part of the Arduino mini conference - for more details, please refer to the schedule.
Horus 14: A successful launch
Yesterday saw the successful launch and recovery of Horus 14 - the day went smoothly, a big thanks to all involved for their efforts.
The maximum altitude reached was just over 30km, with the flight going exactly according to predictions.
Recovered!
We'll make the full writeup (including pics and video) available soon!
Horus 14: Launch prediction
We're all set to launch Horus 14 today, predictions are currently looking good.
Horus 14 flight prediction
To follow the flight's progress (including live streaming of the launch), keep your eye on the tracker here.
News launch announcement
In recent weeks, Australia has been shocked as Queensland and parts of New South Wales have been affected by severe flooding, claiming the lives of many and destroying thousands of homes. Our thoughts go out to thoseВ who have lost loved ones during this time. A relief fund has been set up by the Queensland government to assist with the enormous clean up that lays ahead - please consider making a donation.
Flooding in Toowoomba
In related news, the Australian Linux conference was scheduled to be held in Brisbane this year - unfortunately with much of the Brisbane CBD affected by the flooding, the future of the conference looks uncertain. Organisers will be making a final decision as to whether the conference will continue in the next few days, after seeking advice from the Queensland premier.
Amongst all the bad news, we're happy to announce that we've scheduled a launch for Tuesday the 18th of January. The payload is to be a plush Tux (the Linux mascot) - In conjunction with the organisers of Linux Conf, we'll be auctioning the footage as well as Tux himself off, with proceeds raised going directly to charity.
This launch also gives us a chance to test the MobSenDat platform, developed for the Arduino mini conf (a part of the 2011 Linux conf) - as well as organising our charity launch, Mark has been busy building a MobSenDat board & a payload to house it!
Mark with his payload
I'll update the blog with more soon - including predictions for the launch. Stay tuned!
Update on recent upcoming launches
The Project Horus website became a little stagnant over the festive period - but that doesn't mean we've been sitting idle!
Back in November we launched Horus 12, the first of 2 flights backed by Tony Wheeler of Lonely Planet. The flight was a success, and was recovered less than 50km away from the launch site, narrowly avoiding landing in the Murray river! 
Checkout the full write-up for all the details, including more video.
More recently, we launched and recovered Horus 13. This flight included HD video, but I'll keep the rest under wraps for now - keep yours eyes on the blog for an update on this one soon. 
Recovering Horus 13 from a wheat field
I'm pleased to announce that we have more launches in the pipeline too - including another amateur radio launch. We're hoping to fly our repeaters again, as well as some DX beacons and experimental systems. More to come soon! 