[TNham] UX-8 agenda change - Launch at the Knoxville Hamfest

[Greg Williams]

  In lieu of the postponement of the "Even Steven" flight, we got 
together Tuesday night and decided to pull the minimal resources we have 
and do a demo mission launching from the Knoxville Hamfest at Kerbela 
Temple!  This afternoon we got the go for launch from RACK and Kerbela 
and we are hoping for blue skies and calm winds.

UX-8 is called project "Pie in the Sky".  Why, you ask?  Well, we are 
setting out to do what might be a first:  Send Moon Pies to near space!  
Yes, *MOON PIES*, like the ones you eat.  Why?  Well, it kinda went from 
a picnic basket launch (dont ask) to sending food up that we can 
(hopefully) snack on when they come back down.  We want to do a demo and 
a "PR stunt" and make this a fun event for everyone. 

We will have a "tinytracker" for the flight (yes, we know, but it is a 
demo flight so it shouldn't be up long) and as many Moon Pies as we can 
cram in to a box. 

Launch time is/ /for *Noon *at the Kerbela Temple.  We are working 
around the hamfest folks and the forums, so as not to overlap or 
interfere with another forum.  The Hamfest is slated to run from 9AM to 
4PM.  We want to have our volunteers given the opportunity to enjoy the 
hamfest as well as plan for chasing should they desire. 

Greg Williams (K4HSM) is heading up the launch team. 
Travis Maclay (N4TJM) is heading up the chase team.
Dan Bowen (K2VOL) and Mike Coffey (KJ4Z) are assisting with logistics 
and information.

We will solicit volunteers from the crowd to assist with inflation and 
launch of the payload.  Announcements of the launch at the hamfest are 
being planned for in advance of the flight in order to give everyone 
interested a chance to participate.

Since this is a demo flight, only the tracker/GPS is scheduled to go, 
and maybe some QSL cards and a camera if one can be procured...and, of 
course, the MOON PIES.  We plan to simply inflate the balloon as much as 
possible and then let it go.  Present predictions show that it is slated 
for landing in or near the Smoky Mountains on a Southeastern track.  We 
will continue to update the web page as we get new data on possible 
landing sites.

We will need other help as well.  We've been offered space to set up a 
donation jar and brochures to pass out, so that we can promote UTARC.  
We could use a couple of the students to assist with that. 

We also could use an APRS setup and spare radio to monitor chase team 
communications as they track UX-8. 

Please come out and support UTARC and RACK and have some fun, and some 
*moon pies*!!!

Flight:  UX-8 (Pie in the Sky)
Date:  June 10, 2006
Location:  Kerbela Temple parking lot, Knoxville, TN
Time:  Noon Eastern Time
Frequency (144.390 APRS)
Payload:  Tinytracker, box of Moonpies, QSL cards
Purpose:  Demonstration of balloon launch, generate more interest from 
community.
Duration:  Less than one hour in the air

Items needed:

    * Donation Jar (possibly use the box that Even Steven was to be
      placed in)
    * Brochures (can someone create and make some demo brochures about
      UTARC?)
    * APRS Setup to show track of UX-8

Please contact Dan Bowen or myself if you would like to help.  Dan's 
email (he is out of town until Friday) is dbowen1 at mac.com and my email 
is k4hsm at knology.net.  Travis' e-mail is tjmaclay at charter.net if you're 
interested in chasing.

The web site for more information is *http://balloon.utarc.org.
*
RACK Hamfest information can be found at *http://www.w4bbb.org*.


Greg Williams, K4HSM