 | | Monday 1st September 2003
Balloon record attempt - facts | |
|  | | imulation of the record attempt |
| | Some facts about this record attempt and the remarkable balloon being used. |
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 | The balloon is aiming to reach a record breaking 132,000 feet - which is 25 miles or 40 kilometers. | | | If they reach that height conditions on board will resemble those on the surface of Mars, with temperatures dropping as low as - 70oC (-94oF), then rising to around - 25oC (-13oF) and with high levels of radiation. | | | The balloon is seven times higher than Nelson’s Column and as high as the Empire State Building; 400 times the size of a normal balloon. | | | The balloon weighs 1.7 tonnes and is made from polyethylene. | | | It is filled with helium. | | | If it did suffer a puncture, the balloon would not explode, as it is not pressurised like a toy balloon. | | | At the end of the mission the balloon will slash down in the sea. |
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