Launch of Aesop Payload

The weather finally cooperated early this morning and we launched the AESOP science payload at 4:08am local time. Here's the photo from the Esrange press release. I took several photos while videotaping the preparation and launch for NASA. During the flight, the real-time flight path data is online. As of 3pm local time, it's now heading off over the North Atlantic toward Greenland and will be recovered in Canada in 4 or 5 days. After a day or two of final check-out, our ULDB test flight will be ready to launch next.

Here's a closer look at the payload and the 1000-foot flight train with 100-foot parachute. The 40 million cubic foot balloon is filled to allow full expansion at an altitude of 130,000 feet. It was cold out, but the sun never sets. It's strange seeing the sun directly North on the horizon after midnight!