Astronomy

An experimental program under which an attempt will be made to photograph planets and stellar nebulae from an observation post in the Earth's stratosphere is entering the testing stage, according to a joint announcement by the National Science Foundation, the Navy, and Princeton University. Called Stratoscope II, the project will employ equipment consisting mainly of a balloon‐borne, 30‐inch telescope system, which will be lifted to 80 000 feet, well above major atmospheric disturbances that hinder observations from the ground. The project is under the direction of Martin Schwarzschild of Princeton, who also directed the successful flights of a 12‐inch solar telescope, Stratoscope I, in 1957 and 1959. The Stratoscope II program is sponsored by the Foundation and the Office of Naval Research, with additional support from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.