Taking pictures of the earth from the universe is an intense and intense task that only NASA can accomplish. How much does it cost to take a panoramic picture of the planet under our feet and show those layers of blue in one photo? At least tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars? No, the Englishman Robert Harrison proved that you only need 500 pounds, a little whimsy and a little bolder, and you can photograph the earth yourself. Robert, 28, is an IT engineer. In 2008, he tried to take photos of www.xiangshui88.com and his family by remote control of a helicopter, but the plan failed miserably. However, another idea came to his mind-if it rises higher and higher, is it possible to photograph the earth? This crazy idea makes everyone laugh: Are you crazy? Three years later, Robert has successfully launched the 12 aerial equipment, and has indeed taken many beautiful photos of the earth. Surprisingly, his equipment is only an ordinary Canon digital camera, a GPS, several rolls of tape and a sounding balloon-* * * costs 500 pounds! Three years ago, when Robert started this crazy project, Yi Bei helped him a lot-he bought balloons and cameras there. He downloaded a software, and after improvement, he controlled the camera to start every 5 minutes, taking 8 photos, 1 video. Using the GPS positioning system, he can detect the specific position of the balloon through Google Maps with an accuracy of 10 meter. At the same time, the GPS system and the camera are tightly wrapped in an insulated square box to protect them from working at high altitude. How high does wind energy take this equipment? It depends on the weather. Robert said, "When the weather is fine (windy), it is 10 to 12 kilometers; When the weather is bad (windy), 50 kilometers. " On the ground, the diameter of the sounding balloon is only 1 m. Due to the decrease of air pressure www.flm8.com caused by rising, it can eventually expand into a balloon with a diameter of 20 meters. When it rises high enough and the atmospheric pressure is too thin, the sounding balloon will explode, and the insulated box will be tied under the micro parachute and slowly fall back to the ground. At this time, the GPS system should play its irreplaceable role-helping Robert recycle these devices. Robert also put a label on the outside of the small box with his name and telephone number on it, and marked: harmless scientific experiment. Last time, he found his camera 80 kilometers away from the launch point. June 5438+October 2008 10, he launched the first aerial shooting equipment, named Icarus. Icarus is a character in Greek mythology. He wants to fly closer to the sun. "Before shooting, I thought I would only get some beautiful photos. As a result, I saw the curve of the earth, the blue atmosphere and the dark space. " Icarus filmed 1000 miles of the earth's surface for Robert. "When I saw these photos, I was sitting in a local bar. I was shocked at that moment, and I will never forget it in my life. Perhaps this statement is too religious, but we all know that the earth is almost the only place we know where there is air and life, and we share this beautiful planet. " Icarus shocked not only Robert's friends, journalists and readers, but also NASA and the British Space Agency. Robert can't hide his pride. "An employee of NASA called me. They were curious about how I took these photos and thought I must have used a rocket. They told me that it would cost millions of dollars to take these photos. " The British Met Office followed Harrison's example and launched balloons to measure the surrounding weather. Harrison is proud that his current aerial photography equipment has been improved to the third generation-now, the camera in that insulated box is not only equipped with a rotating lens, but also with sensors for pressure, temperature and humidity. Although this project can't bring him any profit, he is very satisfied. "At least, I proved that the earth is round."