Balloons built for space research
OCT 11, 2011
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.025632
MSNBC : Suborbital balloons that would reside in Earth’s stratosphere and a balloon probe that would travel to Saturn’s moon Titan are among the devices being tested by NASA in conjunction with Near Space Corp, a company based in Oregon. The company has also tested prototypes for an airplane that would be carried to Mars via spacecraft, then unfold itself to fly through the Martian atmosphere. Although NASA ultimately decided not to go ahead with that project, they did select Near Space as one of the seven companies to receive a contract for suborbital flights. Currently, typical balloon-borne experiments float back to the ground via parachute, but the company is working on a new type of aircraft that could fly itself back to base once it separates from its balloon.
© 2011 American Institute of Physics
