FLYGAS in History! Chicago, IL: In 1932 the board of the - TopicsExpress



          

FLYGAS in History! Chicago, IL: In 1932 the board of the Century of Progress trade show, to be held in Chicago in summer 1933, invited renowned Swiss balloonist Auguste Piccard to perform a high-altitude flight at the fairgrounds. Auguste declined, recommending his twin brother Jean instead. Jean took the lead, but did not have a U. S. flight license, so the Piccards invited Capt. Thomas G. W. Settle to fly the balloon. Named for the show, Century of Progress was built in America with a gondola donated by Dow Chemical, a gas bag from Goodyear-Zeppelin, hydrogen donated by Union Carbide, and scientific instruments supplied by Arthur Compton and Robert Millikan .[38] The first flight from Soldier Field, with Settle alone on board, attracted thousands of spectators and ended in a flop. Moments after liftoff, an open gas release valve forced Century to fall in a nearby railroad yard on August 7, 1933. (Courtesy of Universal City Studios: Universal Newsreels) Ref: Race to the Stratosphere. Manned Scientific Ballooning in America. David H. DeVorkin. Springer-Verlag, New York, 1989 LINK: sciencemag.org/content/245/4924/1401.extract Ref: Souvenir program, The Piccard-Compton Stratosphere Ascension (Chicago: A Century of Progress, 1933), Cheryl R. Ganz Collection, Washington, D.C. 71. LINK: radiostratosphere/zsite/behind-the-dial/stratosphere-name.html
Posted on: Sun, 26 Oct 2014 02:11:40 +0000

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