GoPro and Galaxy Note 2 recovered 2.5 years after stratospheric journey

A journey to the stratosphere and back, meant to last short of two hours, is now complete more than two years later. The travelers - a GoPro camera, a Samsung Galaxy Note II and a Sony camcorder have just been retrieved after spending about 27 months lying on the desert floor in the Grand Canyon.

The devices were installed in a custom-designed 3D-printed enclosure and tied to a weather balloon. Launched into space in June 2013, the trio took part in a flight to the stratosphere, shooting some unique images on the way.

The journey itself lasted only an hour and 38 minutes, and the Note II was supposed to report its GPS coordinates via SMS upon landing, so that the crew could go and pick up their gear. Unfortunately, the devices landed in an area without cellular coverage, contrary to what AT&T's maps indicated during the planning of the event, and the tech along with the footage was thus bound for oblivion.

In a fairy tale turn of events, the gear was discovered just recently by a woman hiking in the area, a woman who happens to work at AT&T. Talk about irony.

You can watch the highlights of the trip in the video below.

Source | Via