CNN Central News & Networks / ITDC India ePress / ITDC News /Agencies/ Bhopal: CNN Central News & Networks / ITDC India ePress / ITDC News / Agencies, Bhopal:
A rocket is not the only way to reach the heights of space. Chennai-based aerospace startup Aero Launch India has carried out a unique experiment by sending a small car bonnet to an altitude of about 21 kilometres from Earth with the help of a high-altitude balloon. Through the mission, the company showed that scientific instruments and other payloads can also be sent to the upper layers of Earth’s atmosphere using a balloon.
The mission was launched on November 1, 2026, from Krishnasamy College of Arts and Science in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. In the mission, named HAB0226, a paint protection film (PPF) from automotive brand CarzSpa’s Aegis XG series was applied to the miniature car bonnet. The experiment was conducted to mark 20 years of CarzSpa.
Tests were conducted in minus 50-degree temperatures. During the nearly two-hour flight, the payload reached an altitude of about 21 kilometres. At that height, the temperature was recorded at up to 50 degrees Celsius below zero. The film’s capability was tested in conditions such as low air pressure and strong ultraviolet (UV) radiation at this altitude. According to the company, no visible change was seen in the coating after its return.
The payload was made using lightweight expanded polystyrene, carbon fibre pipes and specially prepared components. The flight was recorded with a 5.7K-resolution 360-degree camera. The mission also carried a UV data logger from Space Technology and Aeronautical Rocketry (STAR), which collected data on ultraviolet radiation at different altitudes.
Reaching near-space without a rocket is noteworthy because Elon Musk sent his Tesla Roadster car into space in 2018 using SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket. The Indian startup, however, used a balloon instead of a rocket. This was not a space mission, but an experiment that reached the high atmospheric region near Earth’s stratosphere. Such high-altitude balloons can prove useful for scientific research, collecting weather-related data and testing new technologies.
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