balloon v1.0 is a fascinating report of building and launching a weather balloon with an onboard linux/gps/digital camera in california. the story of the chase to follow it and find where it lands is great, as are the aerial photos it takes. i love stuff like this where people put bits and bobs of technology together and create something really interesting.

With the current flight path, it seemed possible (but statistically unlikely) that the balloon could land right *on* the freeway, which would be really bad. I was picturing a major pile-up on I-5, caused by the remains of my experiment, with my name and contact info prominently displayed on the outside.

[found via jwz]