All eyes will be on the weather above the Wanaka Airport tomorrow morning as Nasa prepares to launch its super pressure balloon into the stratosphere. Preparations for the launch will begin early tomorrow morning with lift-off scheduled between 8 and 11.30am, if the weather is accommodating. Wanaka Balloon mission manager Gabe Garde said the weather at both ground level and higher up looked positive for a launch attempt. Once launched, the 532,000-cubic-metre balloon will ascend to an altitude of 33.5 kilometres. NASA estimates the balloon will circle the southern hemisphere’s mid-latitudes once every one to three weeks, depending on wind speeds.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 07, 2017 02:26 UTC