Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1933-11-21

which took off from here yesterday. said
today that Lieut.. Comdr. T. G. w.
Settle, pilot OF the bag, had discussed
with him before the take-of the poSSl-
bility of keeping the balloon alort all
night.
He said Settle told him II wind con-
ditions were favorable, so there was no
danger of being blown out to sea, he
might not attempt a landing in the
darkness, but keep the balloon up until
daylight.
Settle mentioned the possible diff
Guilty in handling the T-foot spherical
gondola of the balloon at the ground
level should landing be attempted In
darkness, Fulton said.
Sought Cosmic Ray Data.
Taking OF at Akron Airport yester-
day at 9:27 am. (E. S. IT,, Settle and
Mai. Chester L. Fordney had the
specific mission of studying the nature
of the cosmic ray, that elusive beam
bombarding the earth which has
claimed the undivided attention OF
famous scientists for years. The rays,
100 times as powerful in the strato-
sphere as at sea level, were to be re-
corded on delicate instruments carried
by the aernnauts.
If, in summing up the results Of
today's experiment, 1t is found that DR..
Arthur H. Compton of the University
of Chicago is correct in contending the
rays are electrons, scientists possibly
would see support for the theory that
the universe originated in an explosion
thousands of millions OF years ago.
Or, If it is found that the rays are
photons, or bullets of light, as DR..
Robert A. Millikan of California Insti-
tute of Technology contends. those
same scientists may conclude that the
universe is Immortal" and self-re-
newing. The photons, according to the
Millikan theory, represent leftover
energy released in space in the process
of forming new atoms OF matter to re-
plenish dying stars.
Whatever they found concerning the
cosmic ray will not be known until
a study of the recordings of their in
strumentS is completed.
Equipped to Make Tests.
The aeronauts carried two "coinci-
dence counters" and another meter, as
well as a block of tungsten to carry
on the experiments DR.. r. J. Stephen
son, University of Chicago. an associ-
ate of DR.. Comptons, was IN charge
of the ground phases OF the work.
Accompanying Settle and Fordney,
too. were some one-cell organisms for
a further experiment in determining
the effect of the cosmic rsy on living
matter.
In perfect weather, the two Navy men
sailed away from the field after wait
TO permit the sun to expand the 5000
cubic feet of hydrogen gas within the
500 ooo-cubic-foot bag and thus increase
its lifting capacity. Six hours and
% minutes later SetteT told Admiral
King Of the Naval Bureau Of Aeronau-
tics:
Were at the peak now, and ! think
we'll start down"
throughout the flight, as the hydro
gen heated by the suns rays drew them
upward, they maintained contact with
the ground, reporting that they were
comfortable, were working without
! gloves in a temperature of around As
degrees, while outside the stratosphere
was many degrees below freezing, and
that the sky was Of an amazing blue
Once in q conversation with Col
Frank Knox of the Chicago Daily News
one of the sponsors of the fight which
twice was begun at Chicago and tW1ce
abandoned, Fordney was asked how his
ballast was holding out
Fordney laughed The ballast Is
going to outlast the commander" he
replied, referring to Settle. The skip
per Of the shakespeare balloon evidently
had been wrestling with the ballast
from the time the real ascent started
until that moment The balloon lazec
along at an altitude of less than a mile
! for three hours or so before dropping
ballast for the trip into the upper air
! Yesterdays flight was preceded by
/ that of the three Russians who claimed
! to have reached lib miles, and those
/ of the Swiss scientist, Auguste Picard
/ in May, 1881, and August, 1882.