NASA's Space Grant Ballooning Project
The Eclipse Ballooning Project is a collaborative effort to live stream footage of the Moon's shadow during the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse from the edge of space - a feat that's never been done before.
The Eclipse Ballooning Project includes 55 teams from 30 state-based Space Grant Consortia and brings together students and institutions with a vast spectrum of backgrounds and specialties. The teams are from high schools, community colleges, four-year colleges, and universities. Come August, 2017, the teams will converge upon 30 locations along the path of totality. At approximately 9:15am Pacific Daylight Time the first balloon will launch off a research vessel in the Pacific Ocean, giving the public one of the first glimpses of the Moon’s shadow as it races towards the Oregon coast. The other teams will follow suit with precision timing - from Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and the Carolinas until the last balloon is launched off a Coast Guard ship in the Atlantic Ocean. The Space Grant community is excited to share this fascinating perspective with the public on eclipse day.