European military contractor QinetiQ is sponsoring an attempt at the balloon world altitude record. The entire story is here:

QinetiQ1

The flight has been postponed until September 3rd.

British aeronauts Andy Elson and Colin Prescot are attempting to reach 132,000 feet (25 miles, 40,233 meters) in their helium balloon dubbed, for obvious reasons, the QinetiQ1. The record, set by US Navy pilots Malcolm Ross and Vic Parther in 1961, stands at 113,740 feet (21.54 miles, 34,667 meters).

The balloon is 1250 feet tall, making it equal to the height of the Empire State Building. The balloon is as big as it is because it needs enough mass to displace the minimal atmosphere at that altitude.

The engineering and science behind the attempt is fascinating and will lend itself to communications and other projects, for example, where orbit-based satellites prove too expensive.

There will be many sites covering the story. I'll be checking in at Slashdot and the BBC, as well as the main QinetiQ1 website.

UPDATE:

The BBC will have a live webcam of the entire flight from Cornwall.

UPDATE:

BBC reports the flight has been cancelled for this year. Bummer.