(05-30-2021, 12:33 AM)Hotinhawaii2 Wrote:(05-29-2021, 07:58 PM)HereOnThePrimalEdge Wrote: Any idea who launched this one?This one was gigantic! I think it must have been the $2 million kind. I have read that many companies have launched them to get very high res images of the earth. I could tell it was nothing like a 4-6 foot balloon. I could clearly see the ridges on the sides and I could see it billowing in the wind.
Years ago I watched a silver weather(?) balloon released near the old control tower at Hilo airport. It was approximately 4-6 feet across(?). They were inside the fence so I assume state or federal officials. Sorry I can't be more specific, but it was awhile ago. Perhaps you can call an airport administrative office and ask if they know of an agency that might launch a balloon from there?
(Be careful looking into a telescope aimed near the sun before it sets. It would only take a moment to burn your retina)
As for the UFO title, I'm sticking with it. It was a UFO for an hour for me and many others saw it and no one could identify it. It appeared round and stationary to the naked eye.
A weather balloon that expands to the size of a football field because it is high in the atmosphere, would not be stationary, nor would you have the equipment to get an in-focus and sharp image of it. In addition, how would you know how large it was without a reference? You can only do that if you determine its angular size and distance. How did you do that? Thirdly, once the balloon would have reached an altitude of a few thousand feet, it would have been moving with the winds associated with the jetstream that flows roughly west to east. That would mean it would have been moving quite quickly and not stationary and doesn't explain where it would have been launched from. Finally, now you say the naked eye, not from the telescope you used, and who are these other people?