Imperial Valley press., 1933-11-20
SE 7 TIE OFF
ON FLIGHT To
UPPER REALM
Naval Officer And Major Of
Marines Will Attempt To
Pierce Stratosphere.
TO STUDY COSMIC RAYS
Voyage Is Made In Effort To
Obtain Technical Data OF In
terest To Science.
TO STUDY COSMIC RAYS

CHICAGO, Nov. 20. U.P-
Lieut.. Commander 7. G. w.
Settles stratosphere balloon
started to descend after reach
ing an altitude of approximate
Iy $4,000 feet late today, radio
reports said.
With the sun sinking and the
gas consequently contracting
the balloon came down rapid
Iy and soon was at the $4,000
foot Level.
AKRON, Nov. 20. U.P)-Two in
trepid aeronauts shot upward
from earth today, encased in a
metal gondola attached to huge
balloon which they believed would
take them into the stratospheric
regions 10 miles or more above the
ground.
Lieut.. Commander T. G. w. Set
tie, attempting his second strato-
spheric flight, and Major Chester
Fordney of the U. S. marines, were
in the balloon as it tore itself from
the grasp of the ground crew and
A relatively small crowd of 400
or 500 persons watched as the craft
scared into the air and drifted off
toward the southeast, rising rapid
ly.
The voluminous folds of the huge
silver balloon sagged and flapped
in the wind, as the bag was only
partially filled by the 10000 cubic
feet of hydrogen lifting gas. At
an altitude of 10000 feet, the gas
will have expanded sufficiently to
completely fill the 100000 cubic
foot bag.
At the present velocity of the
wind it was expected the balloon
would near the Atlantic coast be-
fore coming to earth. 1t was
thought Settle would reach the
maximum altitude shortly after
noon, after which the more leisure
ly descent would begin.
B. F. Fulton, airport manager,
named as official observer by the
American Aeronautical Association,
sealed the balloon IS two paragraphs
which will officially record the
height to which it rises.
Commander Settle said he expect
ed to reach approximately $4,000
feet, but had little hope of better
ing the altitude record of more than
11.8 miles made by two Soviet bal
loonists. The latter used a gas bag
one third larger than Settles.
One of the main objectives Of the
flight was to study cosmic rays in
the stratospheric regions 10 miles
above earth. Commander Settle
also hoped to locate an ozone stra-
tum through which it is believed
ultra violet rays from the sun are
filtered before reaching earth.
A Gaertner spectograph, capable
of photographing cosmic and other
rays invisible to the naked eye, was
among the scores of delicate in
struments installed in the gondola.
Two instruments will be used in
regarding the intensity of the rays.
while a third will record the direc-
ton in which they travel.
Today flight marked the second
attempt of Commander Settle to
ll1N dNlC ldlOok)liClCE Oil mug
ust he took off from Chicago as
feature of the Century of Prog
ress exposition. but landed on rail-
road tracks 10 minutes later be-
cause of sticky gas valves.
The air-tight gondola is neces-
sary to protect the flyers from the
bitter cold-perhaps 10 degrees be-
low zero-and lack of oxygen en-
countered at high attitudes. Tanks
Of oxygen were carried in the gon-
dola to be released as needed.
Conditions about the same as at
twilight on earth awaited the aer-
onauts in the stratosphere. The
sky is appreciably darkened 10
miles above ground.
Settle and Fordney planned to
keep in communication with the
earth by radio. However, they
took no chances. If their radio
should fail and they should be
forced down far from human habi-
tation, they will have emergency
rations to last six days.
An inflated rubber ring was af-
fixed to the bottom of the gondola
1t would keep the ball afloat in
event they are forced down on wat
er. They also carried parachutes.