NASA-funded balloon goes to the edge of space

New York, March 15
NASA's newest American commercial near-space services provider, World View (WV) of Tucson, Arizona, successfully launched its Tycho balloon from Arizona's Pinal Airfield.

The balloon reached an altitude of 105,000 feet and loitered above 98,425 feet for nearly an hour and 45 minutes.

It carried University of Central Florida's (UCF), Orlando, Planetary Atmospheres Minor Species Sensor (PAMSS) experiment and Erie Pennsylvania's Gannon University (GU) Cosmic-Ray Calorimeter (CRC).

UCF's PAMSS is the first mid-infrared, intra-cavity laser absorption spectrometer that will be detecting trace gases while operating autonomously.

This technology could be used for future planetary missions as well as the study of the earth's atmosphere.

The CRC payload is designed to detect high-energy cosmic rays and helping to discover how the universe works.

Both experiments were successfully recovered and delivered back to the researchers. The PAMSS team verified that they received data in the correct format, a good sign for mission success.

"I was very satisfied with the payload integration effort and overall flight performance provided by World View," said Paul De Leon, NASA's campaign manager.

"The WV team was very professional and accommodating to the payload provider needs," De Leon added.

NASA's Flight Opportunities Programme enables the development of technologies by providing affordable access to space environments using commercially available sub-orbital flights.