Highest altitude aerial seeding
- Who
- FABER DAVID BURGOS SARMIENTO, Daniel Burgos Sarmiento, Luis Alonso Gil Silva, Oscar Eduardo Castaño Chavez, Luis Carlos Correa Ortiz, Frank Florez Montes, Viviana Cardona Posada, Daniela Gómez Gómez, Julio Esteban Burgos Sarmiento, Juan Diego Giraldo Ospina, Edwin Andrés García Hurtado, Samuel Aristizábal Botero, Jhon Sebastián Díaz Villa, Sonia López López
- What
- 35,175 metre(s)
- Where
- Colombia (Puerto Lopéz )
- When
- 30 May 2025
The highest altitude aerial seeding is 35,175 m (115,403 ft) and was achieved by Faber Burgos, Daniel Burgos, Luis Gil, Oscar Castaño, Luis Correa, Frank Florez, Viviana Cardona, Daniela Gómez, Julio Burgos, Juan Giraldo, Edwin García, Samuel Aristizábal, Jhon Díaz, Sonia López (all Colombia) in Puerto Lopez, Colombia, on 30 May 2025.
Faber Burgos Sarmiento is a content creator and has previously achieved a record for the most views for a weather balloon video on Facebook.
He was inspired by reforestation efforts that use planes and helicopters to disperse seeds, but aimed higher - literally. With the support of his wider team, he used a technique called Nando Dango which consists of compacting seeds in protective clay, allowing them to germinate naturally upon landing. They selected non-invasive species that could thrive in the Colombian region with the aim of promoting biodiversity and sustainability.
The deployment system was developed with students and professionals from Universidad de Manizales. It involved two weather balloons, each equipped with GPS, altimeters, onboard cameras, and microcomputers to track and record the entire mission. The seeds release was programmed to begin at 28,000 m and finish at 35,000 m. Only one probe, Kumanday, successfully deployed the seed bombs and filmed the full process from launch to landing. Both probes were recovered afterward.