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Laseer on helium balloon idea

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LaserBalloon

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I'm new here, so hello everyone.

I came here because I have an idea. Everyone is probably going to tell me it's a very bad idea, but here goes...

On a clear, dark, moonless night, I want to take a helium-filled weather balloon, and launch it with a ~30mW green laser pointer attached, with the laser pointing at the ground. These balloons can go over 100,000 feet high.

Following it would require a lot of driving and close coordination with someone else in the vehicle spotting. After a thousand feet or so, there should be enough beam divergence and atmospheric interference so that eye damage isn't a concern.

How high could it go before it 's beam could no longer be seen?
How wide of a ground area would the laser light cover at it's maximum viewable distance?
Would the extreme ambient cold temperature affect the laser?
Would this result in a flood of UFO sightings?
 





LaserBalloon said:
I'm new here, so hello everyone.

I came here because I have an idea.  Everyone is probably going to tell me it's a very bad idea, but here goes...

On a clear, dark, moonless night, I want to take a helium-filled weather balloon, and launch it with a ~30mW green laser pointer attached, with the laser pointing at the ground.  These balloons can go over 100,000 feet high.

Following it would require a lot of driving and close coordination with someone else in the vehicle spotting.  After a thousand feet or so, there should be enough beam divergence and atmospheric interference so that eye damage isn't a concern.

How high could it go before it 's beam could no longer be seen?
How wide of a ground area would the laser light cover at it's maximum viewable distance?
Would the extreme ambient cold temperature affect the laser?
Would this result in a flood of UFO sightings?
Click to expand...


It could go REALLY high before you can no longer see the beam .

It depends on the divergence of the laser and how high it is what the dot size will be

Yes the extreme cold will probably stop the laser from working

And yes there will be people thinking they've been abducted and everything.



It would be easier to get a long flat area ( Arizona desert ? ) and fire it along that rather than launching it up in a weather balloon .

-Adam
 
dude your crazy...........BUT THAT IS SUCH AN AWESOME IDEA!!!!!! :D :D :D
i think diachi is right tho.
the higher it gets, obviously the colder it gets so the laser will die.
but besides that........I SAY GO FOR IT!!!!
you should totally keep me updated!!
 
I like the idea, lol. Would be nice to start an UFO discussion :)

I wouldn't waste a laser on that though. :P

If you will do this, please film it! ;)
 
Okay, I've decided to do this, but it's been 5 or 6 years since I've been into lasers, and I sold all my lasers and test equipment. In addition, a lot of my laser knowledge has been lost to aging brain cells, and I'm not up to date on modern laser models. I used to have a few 532nm Chinese lasers that took "C" batteries and had an output of 100 to 300mW. I also had a green 5mW pointer that took AAA batteries and was modified (by turning a variable resistor) to about 30-40mW (I forget the name of it). That's the type of laser I was planning to use. What models are currently available that have a similar output, and are stable? Where can they be purchased online?

I'll film and document the launch and chase, but it will be a few months before I have all the stuff and time to do it.

Any suggestions welcome.
 
Ok. This is a very irresponsible way to use a laser. Not only are you risking breaking Federal Aviation Administration rules and regulations. You put any aircraft in the area at risk for blindness. I am a pilot. I do not want any distractions at night while flying or attempting to land. What are you going to do if the balloon gets away from you, the laser quits while cold and then possibly restarts when balloon hits warmer air on descent or the possibility of the thing falling into the wrong hands (which sounds like your hands are the wrong hands). Please do not do this. Take it to a large flat area and expirement there. Do not risk anybody else in dumb ideas like this. All it takes is one person to report this and our hobby is more regulated. There is no good outcome from this. You know that lasers extend their beams for long distances, don't risk anybody for knowledge we already have. What happens when you drop a bowling ball off a bridge into on coming cars????? Get the idea?
 
If you want to do this, get a Romisen L-C030 from dealextreme, they are really stable, have a clicky switch and aren't affected too much by temperature.

But I still don't think you should do this ::)
 
Or you could use a red laser.You'll loose a lot of brightness but at least it fixes the cold problem.Another problem would be ice forming on the lens :-/ Lol, I had an idea in a thread somewhere with a more complex fake UFO with more baloons and LEDs. ;D
 
Diachi said:
[quote author=LaserBalloon link=1239225018/0#0 date=1239225006]I'm new here, so hello everyone.

I came here because I have an idea. Everyone is probably going to tell me it's a very bad idea, but here goes...

On a clear, dark, moonless night, I want to take a helium-filled weather balloon, and launch it with a ~30mW green laser pointer attached, with the laser pointing at the ground. These balloons can go over 100,000 feet high.

Following it would require a lot of driving and close coordination with someone else in the vehicle spotting. After a thousand feet or so, there should be enough beam divergence and atmospheric interference so that eye damage isn't a concern.

How high could it go before it 's beam could no longer be seen?
How wide of a ground area would the laser light cover at it's maximum viewable distance?
Would the extreme ambient cold temperature affect the laser?
Would this result in a flood of UFO sightings?
Click to expand...


It could go REALLY high before you can no longer see the beam .

It depends on the divergence of the laser and how high it is what the dot size will be

Yes the extreme cold will probably stop the laser from working

And yes there will be people thinking they've been abducted and everything.



It would be easier to get a long flat area ( [highlight]Arizona desert[/highlight] ? ) and fire it along that rather than launching it up in a weather balloon .

-Adam[/quote]

Hey i live in Arizona!
 
Okay, my plan is to launch on the western side of the Everglades. I will launch on a windless night. It will drift to the east. This is a very unpopulated area. There are no airports nearby. It might drift over a couple of Indian reservations, but for the most part it's all deserted swampland. I highly doubt it will drift as far as Miami without the balloon popping from the expansion of the helium.

I think I will include a bright white LED (like a 3W or 5W Luxeon), as well as red and green lasers. With all of them swaying about, it should provide a unique colored twinkling effect.

Launch will probably be in early June.
 
azfrench said:
Ok.  This is a very irresponsible way to use a laser.  Not only are you risking breaking Federal Aviation Administration rules and regulations.  You put any aircraft in the area at risk for blindness.  I am a pilot.   I do not want any distractions at night while flying or attempting to land.  What are you going to do if the balloon gets away from you, the laser quits while cold and then possibly restarts when balloon hits warmer air on descent or the possibility of the thing falling into the wrong hands (which sounds like your hands are the wrong hands).  Please do not do this.  Take it to a large flat area and expirement there.  Do not risk anybody else in dumb ideas like this.  All it takes is one person to report this and our hobby is more regulated.  There is no good outcome from this.  You know that lasers extend their beams for long distances, don't risk anybody for knowledge we already have.  What happens when you drop a bowling ball off a bridge into on coming cars?????  Get the idea?
Click to expand...

agree
 
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