WASHINGTON (States News Service) - Penguins might value the frigid Antarctic as the perfect New Year's vacation destination, but six scientists from Johns Hopkins University recently trudged there for the sun.
The team, lead by physicist David Rust, gave up a fortnight of relatively warm weather in Laurel, Maryland, to study the sun's solar flares and other releases of solar energy -- in one of the coldest climes on earth.
They sent their specialized telescope on a nearly two-week balloon journey circling the Antarctic on Monday.
They hope the combination of floating 23 miles (37 kilometers) up, along with 24 hours of sunlight will give their telescope, called the Flare Genesis, an excellent opportunity to observe solar activity.
The data gathered from this project could provide further clues as to how the gnashing of the sun's magnetic fields produce violent solar events.
The process is similar to what happens when crustal plates on Earth crush together to create earthquakes. In the sun's case, magnetic fields are thought to push against each other and create solar flares.
The last time the team from Johns Hopkins' Applied Physics Laboratory sent up a telescope-carrying balloon in 1996, the sun was relatively quiet.
This year, however, is the beginning of the peak of the 11-year cycle known as solar maximum -- a perfect time for gathering data on solar flares.
The helium balloon, 384 feet (117 meters) in diameter and supplied by NASA, is carrying a high-tech gondola for its cruise through the stratosphere.
On board and rigged to the steel box frame are eight computers and solar panels that operate a 32-inch (80 centimeter) telescope.
Because air turbulence causes light to twinkle, the best images of solar flares come by viewing the sun from above the atmosphere.
And at 80 degrees south latitude, the Antarctic wind will blow the balloon and its payload in a circle, making a round-trip above the continent in about two weeks.
The trip is roughly the same amount of time the scientists have to wait to see if it was all worth it. While the instruments operate through radio signals, opportunities to communicate with them are limited.
"That's the biggest hassle of all. You get about 24 hours of communication for a two-week mission," said Graham Murphy, the one engineer left behind in Laurel, Maryland.
"So after that first 24 hours, it's basically on its own. You can get some information to it, but nothing much."
When the balloon arrives back at its starting point, the payload should be released. A parachute attached to the telescope and its instruments will open, allowing for a gentle landing. Then a rip cord releases the helium, forcing the balloon to the ground.
All this scientific work comes at a price. The six-man team on the frozen ground must brave 14-degree Fahrenheit (minus 10 degree Celsius) weather to put their $5 million project up into the thin Antarctic air.
"One would prefer doing this from space, but we cost a lot less," Murphy said. The payoff, he said, is that "we get to observe the sun 24 hours a day for two weeks."
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