Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

This may be a flight backup for the balloon payload from the Explorer 9 satellite. The object is a deflated balloon made up of laminated layers of aluminized mylar-polyester film, whose surface is marked with nodules. The Explorer 9 mission was intended to study low orbit atmospheric density by measuring the decay of the satellite's orbit as a result of drag. The inflated sphere was sufficiently reflective so that it could be tracked with optical instruments as well as by radar, providing sufficent data to estimate atmospheric density.

The balloon was, in essence, a target to allow ground-based radio and optical telescopes to study its motion. It was launched from Wallops Station Virginia on a Scout rocket on February 16, 1961. The balloon successfully inflated once it was in orbit. The radio beacon that was to mark its progress failed in the course of the first orbit. The satellite stayed aloft until April 9, 1964.

The balloon was transferred to NASM from NASA in March 1971.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type SPACECRAFT-Uncrewed-Parts & Structural Components Manufacturer NASA, Langley
 Dimensions Storage (Rehoused on an aluminum pallet with one other object): 183.8 × 123.8 × 116.8cm, 95.3kg (72 3/8 × 48 3/4 × 46 in., 210lb.)
 Materials Aluminum, Mylar (Polyester), Adhesive
 Inventory Number A19770454000 Credit Line Transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.