Oregon Company Flies High

It isn't often that Oregon makes space news, so I found this to be a real treat.  NASA recently awarded contracts to seven private companies to carry scientific payloads to suborbital space.  One of those companies, Near Space Corporation (NSC), is based out of Tillamook, Oregon.  Okay, so they aren't exactly going into space - NSC builds and launches high altitude balloons.  Very high altitude.  They can launch a payload of over 1300 kg up to an altitude of about 40 km.  That's 130,000 feet.  That's above 99.9% of Earth's atmosphere, and while it isn't quite space, it is high enough to interest NASA.

Near Space Corporation preparing for a balloon launch near Tillamook, Oregon (NSC).

NSC has, in fact, already done some work for NASA, the Jet Propulsion Lab, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  They've done high altitude payload drops to simulate the thin Martian atmosphere, and are even designing a dirigible for use in the methane rich atmosphere of the Saturnian moon, Titan.

And while the other companies that NASA is contracting (including Virgin Galactic and Masten Space Systems) operate rockets to launch payloads to higher, suborbital space, putting scientific equipment on balloons does have its advantages.  Balloons can remain aloft for days at a time, allowing for a longer exposure to near space conditions than a single rocket launch, and for a fraction of the cost.

I'm glad Oregon is finally getting into the space mix.  Hopefully, NSC will allow NASA to get some science done on the cheap, while bringing a little attention to the Beaver State.  With luck, this will be just the beginning of Oregon's role in the burgeoning private space industry.