We’ve been busy watching this balloon now preparing for its 3rd circumnavigation on March 5th 2024. Pico Balloon K9YO-1 has been named “Happy Cone 3” by Ken Daniel’s Granddaughter’s 5th grade class. Happy Cone 3, had reported crossing the International Date Line for a 3rd time last night.
Today’s report, March 1st 2024, is at Grid AN73PW at 22:04 UTC flying at an altitude of 43,832 feet, now for 26 days and 4 hours of flight. This Pico Balloon has been in a very fast Jetstream, 10 days for each time around the world. Pretty amazing for a 32″ diameter balloon and a package that weighs less than an ounce.
If Happy Cone 3 stays on the projected path (NOAA Hysplit below) , it will make its 3rd circumnavigation near the home of Superman, Metropolis, Illinois near the Illinois/Kentucky border on March 5th 2024.
The NOAA Hysplit Model is a program that allows those flying larger balloons as well as our Pico Balloons, the ability to project a forward trajectory which is normally accurate. The NOAA Hysplit Model uses NOAA’s and worldwide weather balloons to project the windspeed and direction at a given altitude. The chart may show a drop in altitude which is not accurate, but it has been fairly accurate for identifying where our balloons are going.
To follow the daily travel of this and our other balloons in flight, please bookmark this link to our Locate and Track page. Updates to our new projects will be mentioned on our NIBBB Home Page and please visit our other pages for building solar panels, technical information and following our past flights.
We’d like to also welcome our new followers to the NIBBB, with a special shout out to the Belleview Amateur Radio Club and their young Hams, in Belleview, Missouri.
73, Cary KD9ITO