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The Nome Nugget
Nome, Nome County, Alaska
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The U.S. Air Force announced expansion of its high-altitude 'Moby Dick' weather balloon program to study floods, dust storms, and hurricanes, extending to Alaska, Europe, and Hawaii in 1956, aiding the 1957-58 International Geophysical Year.
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By ELTON C. FAY
WASHINGTON, (AP)- The Air Force said yesterday it is augmenting its high altitude weather balloon program with the hope that it will help explain the cycle of floods, dust storms and hurricanes which now batter the nation.
The use of huge "Moby Dick" weather balloons hitherto has been confined to the United States. But Sunday's announcement said the program is being expanded "to include other areas in the Northern Hemisphere."
A spokesman said this would include Alaska. Some balloons sent up from there presumably would drift eastward into Canada before disintegrating into harmless fragments at altitudes ranging from 30,000 to 200,000 feet.
Additional research balloon stations also will be set up in Europe and Hawaii during 1956, the announcement said.
The Air Force said the expanded program would be of "great use in the International Geophysical Year during 1957-58." In that year two score nations will join in gathering a vast amount of information about weather, terrestrial magnetism, earthquakes, oceanography and other geophysical data.
The giant, plastic balloons, which carry weather instruments, cameras, and equipment registering cosmic rays and other data which is radioed automatically to ground stations, "often have been mistaken for 'flying saucers'," the Air Force said. It added that:
"Balloons are, in effect, miniature satellites' that can remain aloft for several days and thereby collect continuous research."
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Domestic News Details
Primary Location
Washington
Event Date
Yesterday
Outcome
program expansion to include other areas in the northern hemisphere, with additional stations in europe and hawaii during 1956; useful for international geophysical year 1957-58.
Event Details
The Air Force is augmenting its high altitude weather balloon program using huge 'Moby Dick' balloons, previously confined to the United States, now expanding to other areas in the Northern Hemisphere including Alaska, with balloons drifting into Canada; additional research stations in Europe and Hawaii in 1956; balloons carry instruments, cameras, and equipment for weather, cosmic rays, and other data, often mistaken for flying saucers.