• What is Project HALO
• News and Calendar
• Tube Launch 1 (TL1)

• Ground Launch 1 (GL1)
• Sky Launch 1 (SL1)
• Sky Launch 2 (SL2)

HAL5 made amateur rocketry history on Sunday, May 11, 1997.  At 8:25 AM EDT, HAL5's Project HALO team performed the first amateur rockoon mission when it successfully launched its Sky Launch 1 rocket from a high altitude balloon.  HAL5 also made hybrid rocketry history as well, becoming the first organization to launch a hybrid rocket from a high altitude.  Based on an estimated rocket apogee between 30 and 36 nautical miles, HAL5 can now claim the world record for highest altitude achieved to date by an amateur rocket -- and by a hybrid rocket of any kind.

Dates:
Site survey was held on Friday afternoon, May 9, 1997
Site setup was held all day Saturday, May 10, 1997
Rockoon mission was performed on Sunday, May 11, 1997


Times:
Site setup began on Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. EDT
Launch operations began early Sunday about 3:30 a.m. EDT
Balloon launch occurred after Sunrise at 6:59 a.m. EDT
Rocket launch occurred at 8:25 a.m. EDT


Where:  Grass field in Hampstead, along US highway 17 on east North Carolina coast

HALO Sky Launch 1 starts in Hampstead (Map image courtesy of Yahoo! Maps)

The purpose of Project HALO is to make access to space more affordable for students, amateurs, experimenters, and researchers.  It is combination technical and educational program.  The program is divided into several phases.  All phases have opportunities for student involvement at all grade levels.

• Phase 0 was for developing rocket subsystems and testing them on the ground and at high altitude.
• Phase 1 is to build the rocket and successfully launch it from a balloon.
• Phase 2 will be to develop the operational capability for inexpensive and routine access to space using rockoons.

See the Project HALO Home Page for more details. Goals of HALO Sky Launch 1

Project HALO Sky Launch 1 marks the completion milestone for Project HALO Phase 1, Proof of Concept.  As such, this successful launch was the final test for Project HALO to proceed onto Phase 2, Operational Rockoons, when we can start to launch student payloads.

• Primary Goals of HALO Sky Launch 1
  1. Launch the balloon without damaging the balloon, gondola, or rocket -- (ACHIEVED)
  2. Maintain the temperature inside the oxidizer tank to high altitude -- (ACHIEVED)
  3. Successfully launch the rocket from the balloon -- (ACHIEVED)
  4. Verify computer predictions using data transmitted from rocket -- (not achieved)
  
  
• Benefits of Meeting Primary Goals
  • Gain confidence to proceed onto Project HALO Phase 2 -- (ACHIEVED)
  • Have one success from which to approach potential donors and clients -- (ACHIEVED)
  
  
• Honors from Meeting Primary Goals
  • First amateur group to have a successful rockoon mission -- (ACHIEVED)
  • First group (amateur or professional) to ignite a hybrid rocket at high altitude -- (ACHIEVED)
    • Important data point for future hybrid rockoons
    • Important data point for hybrid upper stages
  
  
• World Records for HAL5
  • Highest altitude achieved by an amateur rocket (by any means) -- (ACHIEVED)
  • Highest altitude achieved by an amateur rockoon -- (ACHIEVED)
  • Highest altitude achieved by an hybrid-motor rocket (any organization) -- (ACHIEVED)
  • Highest altitude achieved by an amateur hybrid-motor rocket -- (ACHIEVED)
  
  

• Secondary Goals of HALO Sky Launch 1
  1. Have the rocket exceed an altitude of 50 nautical miles (nmi) -- (not achieved)
  2. Have the rocket exceed an altitude of 100 kilometers (km) -- (not achieved)
  3. Recover the rocket -- (not achieved)
  4. Recover the balloon gondola -- (not achieved)

     BUT WE ARE GOING TO TRY AGAIN WITH SKY LAUNCH 2!!

  
  
• Benefits of Meeting Secondary Goals
  • Have one success from which to approach potential donors and clients
  • Can place the recovered rocket in a museum (how about the Air & Space?)
  • Can inspect recovered rocket and/or gondola for damage
  • Can recover valuable electronics for future reuse
  
  
• Honors from Meeting Secondary Goals
  • First amateur group to get their own rocket into space
  • First group (amateur or professional) to get a hybrid rocket into space
  • First amateur rocket recovered from space
  
  
• Potential Records from Getting into Space
  • Least expensive rocket-to-space program, start to first flight -- (less than $ 20,000)
  • Least expensive rocket space mission, manufacturing and operations -- (less than $ 8,000)

Click on the thumbnail to bring up a larger version.

• 1997-Mar-22 --- First Attempt --- scrubbed due to prelaunch malfunction.
  • Pre-Attempt HAL5 Press Release  (text)
  • Post-Attempt HAL5 Press Release  (text)
  • Article by Tim Pickens -- Rocket Systems Lead
  • Article by Greg Allison -- HALO Program Manager

• 1997-May-03 --- Second Attempt --- postponed due to weather
  • Pre-Attempt HAL5 Press Release  (text)
  • Article by Tim Pickens -- Rocket Systems Lead

• 1997-May-10/11 --- Third Attempt --- successful launch!
  • Pre-Attempt HAL5 Press Release  (text)
  • Post-Attempt HAL5 Press Release  (text)
  • Article by Tim Pickens -- Rocket Systems Lead
  • Article by Larry Scarborough -- Balloon Gondola Lead
  • Article by Peter Ewing
  • Article by Gene Young
  • Article by Greg Allison -- HALO Program Manager
  • Article by Bill Brown -- Balloon Systems Lead
  • Article by Ben Frink
  • Article by John McCallum
  • Article by Ron Creel
  • Editorial by Steve Unger
  • Article by Steve Mustaikis

Amateur Radio Frequencies

See Bill Brown's WB8ELK Home Page or details.

Telemetry Decoding

See Bill Brown's WB8ELK Home Page or details.

Check out Gallery for pictures from SL-1 launch

Modified from original version for the web.