Giant NASA Balloon Ready to Hunt Potentially Dazzling Comet ISON

Space.com ^ | 09/26/13 | Leonard David

[oxcart]

A colossal NASA balloon is poised to carry a free-hanging gondola sky-high on a mission to take a gander at celestial grandeur: Comet ISON.

Weather permitting, NASA's Balloon Rapid Response for Comet ISON (BRRISON) gondola and science instruments are to ascend from the space agency's Scientific Balloon Facility in Fort Sumner, N.M., possibly by Sunday (Sept. 29). The one-day balloon mission's target is Comet ISON, an incoming comet that some scientists have billed as a potential "comet of the century" because it could flare up to spectacular brilliance after a close flyby of the sun in late November.

Along with a 0.8-meter telescope, NASA's reusable BRRISON balloon gondola will carry infrared and near-ultraviolet/visible imaging gear, along with fine-steering mirror technology to obtain high pointing stability while observing Comet ISON. [See amazing photos of Comet ISON by stargazers]

Comet ISON-Hunting BRRISON Balloon Gondola This photo shows the Comet ISON-hunting BRRISON balloon gondola pointing out the door of the hangar for a night time pointing test, to acquire images of stars and planets with both instruments. The instrument will ride a giant NASA balloon to track Comet ISON, the potential "comet of the century."

[oxcart]

Mission Type: Aerial Launch Vehicle: Large Helium-Filled Balloon Launch Site: Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility, Fort Sumner, NM, USA NASA Center: Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Spacecraft Mass: Max Weight 3,600 kg (8,000 pounds) References: BRRISON, First Planetary Balloon Mission in 50 Years.

Looks like NASA is throwing everything but the kitchen sink at ISON.

[Shadowstrike]

Because of Obama we have reverted BACKWARDS to balloon technology

[oxcart]

(((PING)))

[hosepipe]

Obama’s NASA Prophylactic..
They should go to Trojan to become a sponsor..
Must be designed by the Detroit City Council..

[oxcart]

I was taken back by the low tech aspect of this 24 hour mission. All the cut backs at NASA are taking a toll. After the end of the Obama Regime we will be using...

[LibWhacker]

Hunt for it? They shouldn’t have a hard time finding it; it’s going to pass within about 1.5 million miles of the Sun. If that doesn’t totally vaporize it or cause it to break up, I’ll eat my hat.

[Frank_2001]

If it travels by night, it should be OK! ;)

[American Constitutionalist]

Giant NASA Balloon Ready to Snoop Dazzling Comet ISON on Americans.

What a way for the NSA to hide a program to snoop on Americans than to claim that it's a NASA project.

[C210N]

Why is NASA doing this? Only thing that would motivate NASA would be an expectation of finding Muslims on ISON.

[djf]

Aren’t there already 47 Earth-based telescopes and multiple space-based platforms looking at the comet?

And this thing is going to go up for one day, then crash and burn?

I don’t see it giving us anything more or better than we already can do, and as such, sounds like alot of NASA engineers are just bored out of their minds and playing around to stayed amused and make themselves sound useful...

[EveningStar]

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[Lazamataz]

We should stop exploring space. After seeing what happened to America, there is no reason to pollute the rest of the universe.

We do not deserve a place in the stars.

[Shadowstrike]

wouldn’t doubt it one bit.