Sunrise III: Flight Safely Terminated
The flight of the balloon-borne solar observatory Sunrise III was safely terminated at 9:05 a.m. (CEST) today. A few hours earlier, the observatory had lifted off at 3:44 a.m. (CEST) from Esrange Space Center near the small northern Swedish town of Kiruna, not far from the Arctic Circle. During the flight, still unexplained irregularities occurred that made it necessary to end the mission. Sunrise III has come down on Swedish territory. A full investigation will follow.