NEW ALTITUDE RECORD

Hawera Star, Volume LIII, 2 October 1933, Page 5

NEW ALTITUDE RECORD

NEARLY TWELVE MILES UP

ASCENT BY RUSSIAN BALLOON.

FLIGHT OF SIX HOURS

limited Press Association— By Electric Telegraph copyright.) Received 10.30 a.m .to-day. MOSCOW, Oct. 1. The stratosphere balloon “U.5.5.R..” piloted by George Propokiev and two companions, reached a height of 20,286 yards, beating Professor Picard’s record established in August of 1832. The “U.S.S.R.” took off in perfect weather at dawn yesterday and shot up six feet a second. Propokiev immediately established wireless communication with the earth, and in 42 minutes claimed to have risen over 10 miles, adding: “We are feeling fine.” In 157 minutes the balloon had passed Professor Picard’s record and was still rising. The oxygen apparatus was working well, and the temperature within the aluminium, gondola, painted silver-grey, was 71 ' degrees.

The balloon, which was visible from Moscow, finally landed at Kolamensky, 70 miles from Moscow, after 6 hours 17 minutes. It is claimed the instruments recorded 19,000 metres, approximately 11| miles. The balloon, 117 feet in diameter, was filled with 3000 cubic metres of gas, which was expected to- expand eight-fold during the ascent. After first dropping only a mile hourly, the latter stages of the descent were made with extraordinary rapidity. Propokiev’s companions were Eirnest Birbaum (engineer), C. D. 'Goutdonov (scientist). Interviewed, all said they were tired but in excellent physical | condition. Propokiev said the ascent exceeded 19,000 metres, but the precise altitude would be known when the Government commission examined the scaled barograph. When he landed Propokiev harangued an enthusiastic crowd, describing the flight as a victory for the Communist Party and the proletariat.

After a flight of ten hours, in which they ascended 55,777 feet, nearly twice the height of Mt. Everest, eclipsing their own previous altitude record by half a mile, Professor Picard and his assistant, Max Cosyns descended on the shore of Lake Garda, Italy, on August 18, 1932 Professor Picard stated that the scientific results were magnificent, but added: “I feared for a while we would be frozen to death.” The professor was luckier than in the previous attempt in 1931, when he was compelled to land on the Gurgl Glacier. This time the wind carried him over Venice for 'an easy landing, but the balloon was slightly damaged. The aeronauts stepped out from the gondola unharmed. The change from the bitter cold'of the stratosphere, far below zero, to the sweltering heat of the Italian plains, however, was so great that the men almost fainted as they touched the ground.