Skip to main content
  • E-mail
  • Save
  • Print

Balloon-telescope snaps photos of sun

  • Story Highlights
  • Balloon-telescope soars 120,000 feet to snap pictures of the sun
  • A balloon brought the telescope back to earth -- it landed safely in Texas
  • Scientists want to observe details on the sun's surface
  • In 2009, the balloon-telescope combo will embark on pole-circling missions
  • Next Article in Technology »
By Dawn Stover
Decrease font Decrease font
Enlarge font Enlarge font
PopSci.com

(PopSci.com) -- You don't need a rocket to send scientific instruments into space. A really big balloon works just as well, according to an international research team that plans to take a closer-than-ever look at the sun.

art.nasa.balloon.telescope.jpg

A recent test flight launched from New Mexico provided support for the concept. Dangling from a balloon larger than a 747 airliner, a solar telescope soared to 120,000 feet before snapping pictures of the sun. About 10 hours later, the telescope separated from the balloon and parachuted to a safe landing in Texas.

The project, known as "Sunrise," is designed to observe details on the sun's surface that can help researchers forecast electromagnetic storms in Earth's upper atmosphere. In the super-thin air at high altitudes, the telescope can get a much sharper view of the sun than from the ground.

The gondola carrying the telescope has a special motor that keeps the telescope pointed at the sun as the balloon dips and twirls.

Beginning in 2009, the balloon-telescope combo will embark on pole-circling missions above the Arctic and Antarctica. There the telescope will take advantage of the midnight sun to capture continuous images for up to two weeks. E-mail to a friend E-mail to a friend

Copyright © 2009 Popular Science

  • E-mail
  • Save
  • Print
Today's Featured Product:
2011 BMW Z4 sDrive35is
 8.0 out of 10
Recent Product Reviews:
RIM BlackBerry Torch 9800 (AT&T)
 8.0 out of 10
Motorola Rambler - black (Boost Mobile)
 7.0 out of 10
Samsung UN46C6500
 6.9 out of 10