[PREPARATION OF HIGH ALTITUDE WEATHER BALLOON 1967 PLANETARY ENTRY PROGRAM]

Year Published: 1967

Creator: G.T. Schjeldahl Company

Color: Color

Sound: silent

Description: The silent footage depicts the launch of a high-altitude weather balloon carrying a scientific payload, likely part of the Planetary Entry Parachute Program (PEPP) conducted at Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1967. The balloon ascended to over 39 kilometers, releasing the payload, which then simulated a Mars atmosphere reentry trajectory using solid-fueled rockets. This launch was part of a series initiated by the U.S. Air Force in the late 1950s to develop polyester balloons for stratospheric research, led by inventor Gilmore Tilmen Schjeldahl, known for his contributions to plastics and communications technology, including various balloon-based projects and satellites.