AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Our next story takes us to the ice of Antarctica, where NASA scientists are launching gigantic balloons that will rise up way into the stratosphere, to near space. Some of these balloons are so big that an entire football stadium could fit inside one balloon, and they're carrying scientific instruments built to investigate the Earth's atmosphere and cosmic mysteries like dark matter. NASA's Erin Reed has just arrived in Antarctica to help out with these launches, and she's on the line with us now. Thank you so much for giving us a call so soon after getting to Antarctica, Erin.
ERIN REED: No problem. It's great to be here. Thank you.
CHANG: OK, so I want to talk about these giant balloons because, I mean, I have filled up little party balloons with helium before, and I imagine this is sort of the same idea but just on a much, much bigger scale.
REED: Yes. It is a much bigger scale. It can take up to an hour of just filling the balloon with helium in order to fill it up. But we don't actually fill up the entire volume of the balloon on the Earth or on the ground because as the balloon rises in the atmosphere, it'll expand...
CHANG: Oh.
REED: ...Until it fills that entire volume at the stratosphere.
CHANG: Wow. So by sending a balloon way up to near space, what are you hoping to find?
REED: So the primary mission is gaps, and they are looking for dark matter in the universe. So they're going to be looking at the cosmos and trying to probe that. We also have a mission that is looking at atmospheric science. They're trying to understand climate change. We have several of our own payloads or instruments that are looking at the various conditions that the balloon is experiencing during its flight.
CHANG: And why even use balloons? Like, why not use fancy drones or even aircraft to do this - because of the altitude you need?
REED: Commercial aircraft - a lot of aircraft only goes up to 40 or 50,000 feet, maybe a little higher. But, you know, that's not incredibly high. You're above a lot of atmosphere, but you're still not as high as you maybe would want to be.
CHANG: Right.
REED: Going to space is really great. Sounding rockets can take us really high, but they can usually only take us up for a few minutes at a time because they sort of go up, and they come back down.
CHANG: Right.
REED: If you were to put something in orbit - a satellite or a telescope, like Hubble or James Webb - it can take years in the making to make that happen. It's a very expensive, very big undertaking. And so we see balloons as sort of a middle ground because it allows you to get close to space for a long period of time.
CHANG: OK.
REED: And the turnaround time is a lot shorter.
CHANG: Well, I had to ask you because working in Antarctica is an experience that few of us will ever, ever get to have. What is the best part of it for you?
REED: I think one of the best parts of Antarctica is the people here are all focused on science or supporting science, and as a result, it sort of has its own culture and uniqueness. And just being here and knowing that there have been so many other scientists and explorers who've come - that it's amazing to be in a place that other people have walked and done great science. And that's not something that we are as cognizant of in our normal, everyday lives.
CHANG: That is Erin Reed, speaking to us from Antarctica. She manages NASA's balloon research and development laboratory. Thank you so much for joining us from all the way down there.
REED: Thank you so much.
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