Please read this message from Global Space Balloon Challenge for information on a fun opportunity for professionals and amateurs alike:

We are proud to present the 2nd Annual Global Space Balloon Challenge (GSBC), the world’s largest high altitude balloon event. The challenge is simple – get together with some of your friends (and family!) to design and build a high altitude balloon, then join hundreds of other teams around the world in launching your balloon between April 10th and April 27th, 2015. The event is free to participate, and is simply an excuse for you to have some fun getting your hands dirty, learn some new skills, and possibly win some prizes. High altitude balloons are easy to build for people of all skill levels, and the choice of instruments and sensors that your team decides to launch is completely up to you – we only ask that you carry a camera so you can capture incredible photos of the earth from space (http://balloonchallenge.org/gallery/best-photo-1st-2014.jpg).

Last April for our first GSBC, 60 teams from 18 countries on 6 continents flew together. Participants ranged from students and teachers, to amateurs and professionals, to children and their parents. Teams constructed their own zero pressure balloon, radios, and units to measure the ozone, magnetic field, humidity, temperature, and more. The event was featured by Makezine, Popular Science, CNET, and other tech blogs plus news outlets internationally. This year we’re trying to allow even more people to get involved – we’ve expanded out tutorials and resources for all skill levels, and encouraging even more collaboration among international teams through our online help forum. In just one month since we have opened registration for GSBC 2015, over 100 teams from 30 countries have signed up!

For more information, check out the website www.balloonchallenge.org or visit our Facebook page www.facebook.com/balloonchallenge to keep up to date on the latest news.