Giant balloon, telescope rise 120,000 feet

Boulder, Colo. -- U.S. scientists have launched a solar telescope borne by a balloon larger than a Boeing 747 jumbo jet and lifted it to an altitude of 120,000 feet.

Researchers said their landmark test flight earlier this month-- led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research -- clears the way for long-duration polar balloon flights beginning in 2009 to obtain unprecedented details of the sun's surface.

"This unique research project will enable us to view features of the sun that we've never seen before," said Michael Knolker, director of NCAR's High Altitude Observatory and a principal investigator of the project. "We hope to unlock important mysteries about the sun's magnetic field structures, which at times can cause electromagnetic storms in our upper atmosphere and may have an impact on Earth's climate."

The project, known as Sunrise, is an international collaboration that might usher in a new generation of balloon-borne scientific missions that cost less than sending instruments into space. Scientists also can test an instrument on a balloon before making a commitment to launch it on a rocket.

"What we are doing is laying the groundwork for the next generation of space flights," said Knolker.

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