# Student takes pro quality hi-altitude photos with $320 of equipment. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 10, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267 "2012-09-10T03:19:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/1 "2012-09-10T03:19:01Z")
Anyone looking at these photos would assume they came from a satellite or airplane. They were actually shot by an engineering student with an inexpensive camera and a balloon. About $320 based on todays currency rates. He used GPS to track and recover his equipment after it returned to earth. Smart kid. I like the circuity he designed. > **[Out of this world! Student takes stunning snaps of space using only a £30...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2200559/Adam-Cudworth-Student-takes-stunning-snaps-space-using-30-second-hand-camera-balloon.html)** > > With a scientific background consisting of just a physics A-Level, Adam Cudworth, 19, of Worcestershire, spent 40 hours working on a homemade box with a GPS tracker, radio and microprocessor. ---
**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/2 "2012-09-10T06:29:48Z")
A Brit did it in [2008 &2010.](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1260323/British-aerospace-enthusiast-takes-NASA-style-photographs-using-helium-balloon-pocket-camera.html) MIT students did it in [2009](http://space.1337arts.com/). Still, great achievement by the student.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Oukile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@Oukile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oukile)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/3 "2012-09-10T13:38:27Z")
[Two Canadian teenager did that this year, too.](http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/26/canadian-teenagers-lego-man-space) And yes, in each case, it is pretty impressive. Awesome kids! ---
**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/4 "2012-09-10T14:21:12Z")
I am curious. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/5 "2012-09-11T04:00:09Z")
Neat! ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/6 "2012-09-11T05:59:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Spectacular: The images look like they could be the latest taken from a multi-million pound NASA satellite Wow, I didn’t realize we could launch stuff that heavy into orbit! ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/7 "2012-09-11T07:30:01Z")
> [@Indian](#): > > Don’t they need advance permission from Air traffic authorities?. Yes. I read that the MIT group coordinated with U.S. air traffic control. There was also a Romanian guy who sent a lego space shuttle into space on a weather balloon (with a camera). He had so much difficulty with Romanian air traffic control that he moved the launch to Germany instead. [http://inhabitat.com/lego-space-shuttle-boldly-goes-where-no-toy-has-gone-before/](http://inhabitat.com/lego-space-shuttle-boldly-goes-where-no-toy-has-gone-before/) ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/8 "2012-09-11T14:55:18Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > Wow, I didn’t realize we could launch stuff that heavy into orbit! Not sure if serious… ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/9 "2012-09-11T15:39:53Z")
impressive though i think his claim on hours spent may be boastful. accounts of earlier efforts, some very sophisticated, seemed to have taken lots of time. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/10 "2012-09-11T19:30:06Z")
Pretty incredible ! Its like climbing Everest or going to the South Pole, or sailing round the world single handed. A few decades ago it would have been unthinkable ! And now here we are … ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/11 "2012-09-12T01:17:21Z")
Some [Spanish teens](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5005022/Teens-capture-images-of-space-with-56-camera-and-balloon.html) did it in 2009. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/12 "2012-09-13T11:57:10Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Not sure if serious… Multi-million pound… ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/13 "2012-09-13T16:46:23Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > Wow, I didn’t realize we could launch stuff that heavy into orbit! They did it in two trips. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/student-takes-pro-quality-hi-altitude-photos-with-320-of-equipment/634267/14 "2012-09-13T19:49:26Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > Wow, I didn’t realize we could launch stuff that heavy into orbit! > [@Munch](#): > > Not sure if serious… Yeah, I was thinking to myself, “I don’t think they weigh that much …” before I realized I was reading a British article 😛