they have some pretty cool balloons at that thing. Been to it once - there were flying pigs, a guitar, an easter basket and lots of other strange creations
I used to be a lifeguard, but some blue kid got me fired.
I work at NOAA and we launch much smaller balloons that go up to 100,000 feet carrying small instruments that measure ozone and water vapor. One day my student and I decided we wanted to see what the earth looked like from the balloon's point of view. We rigged a small digital camera in a foam box with some heaters and let it take a photo every 30 seconds. We were amazed with the result.
This photo was taken from 97,000 feet looking south west of Denver, CO.