Chinese university students send toy bear into stratosphere, capturing rare picture of Earth

A video of a toy bear soaring to an altitude of 28,000 meters has gone viral.

The plush toy bear set out from the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, located in Ningbo city, east China's Zhejiang Province and arrived at the border between Fuxin city in northeast China's Liaoning Province and Tongliao city in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

After going through preparations such as weighing, temperature checks, and equipment adjustment, the bear was securely fastened to a balloon and then gently lifted into the air, reaching an impressive altitude after soaring through the clouds.

The flight experiment and video was a collaboration between Li Zhenghan, a senior student majoring in materials forming and control engineering at the Faculty of Science and Engineering, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, and his team.

Li pointed out that the altitude reached by the toy bear was within the stratosphere, not outer space. He also emphasized that his experiment followed all regulations and guidelines.

"I have dreamed of aviation and aerospace since I was young," Li said. "Unfortunately, I didn't pass the final physical examination for pilot selection in high school, so I couldn't become an air force pilot. But I still wanted to see what things looked like from the sky."

After coming across a similar experiment conducted by other enthusiasts, Li's childhood dream of flying was reignited.

After Li's knowledge of mechanical engineering, programming, modeling, and circuitry grew over the course of his four years in college, along with the accumulation of experience from various mechanical engineering experiments, he felt that the time was right.

He found a like-minded teammate, Wang Zechen, who studies the same major. Together, they decided to launch the school's mascot, a toy bear dressed in a lab coat, into the sky.

After Li and Wang finalized their idea, along with other team members, they moved into the lab and computer room. For 60 days, they worked tirelessly on sketching, tinkering with wiring devices, making 3D printing models, and conducting repeated temperature control experiments. The team was fully dedicated to its experiment.

After carefully considering factors such as terrain, climate, and receiving feedback from relevant authorities confirming that the project complied with aviation regulations, they made the decision to launch the experiment in northeast China.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday, Li and his teammates embarked on their journey to their dream, using thoroughly tested equipment.

On a clear day with blue skies, the toy bear slowly ascended for 1.5 hours until it reached an altitude of 28,000 meters, capturing a beautiful photo alongside the azure Earth.

Twenty-six minutes later, the toy bear safely returned to land, landing in a rice field.