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Marshall team involved in eclipse balloon project

Posted August 15, 2017 7:00 am

The Associated Press

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) - Some Marshall University students and faculty will participate in a project to launch high-altitude balloons during next week's solar eclipse.

Marshall says the West Virginia Space Grant Consortium chose the team to launch a helium-filled balloon next Monday in southern Illinois. The balloon will carry a video camera and other equipment to an altitude of up to 100,000 feet. The live video feed will be available on NASA's website.

The statement says 55 teams are participating across the United States. The Marshall team chose the remote site near Cobden, Illinois, in part because it's in the area of the total eclipse.

Marshall associate physics professor Jon Saken also says he grew up in Cobden and his parents still live in the same house, so his team will have a free place to stay.

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