Long extension reeling in the stratosphere - A progress report

A balloon-borne winching system providing an improved in-situ observational method for stratospheric photochemistry research was first reported to COSPAR two years ago. Sice that time a second flight has been successfully conducted in which a more complex detection package (98 kg) was twice lowered from a float altitude of 39 km for a distance of 8 km, and each time reeled back up to the winch. Controlled velocities of 4 to 7 meters/sec were implemented for both scans, and the package was brought to a brief stop during the first to evaluate the dynamic effects. Instrumentation aboard both the winch and the detection package again did not identify any threatening dynamic perturbations during any phase of the flight, thus indicating that long extension reeling in the stratosphere can now be conducted on an operational basis. The remaining minor problem areas in the payload are summarized, as are some directions planned for future utilization.