A new record in the history of the Russian aeronautics has been established. For the first time the North Pole has been achieved by <nobr>air-balloon.</nobr> The organization and support of the unique expedition were made by t
On May, 23, 2005 the unique
expeditionary project «The flight to the top of the
planet. To the North Pole by aerostat» was successfully
completed. The project had been dated for the 60-anniversary
of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and the
250-th anniversary of the Moscow State University named
after М.V. Lomonosov. The support and organization
of the project were undertaken by the Investment
Financial Company METROPOL ".
For the first time ever in the development
of the Arctic region it has appeared possible
to reach the North Pole with the help
of an air-balloon. The record flight was carried out
by the crew of the thermal balloon «Svyataya Rus» (Sacred
Russia) under the leadership of the well-known Russian
traveler Valentin Efremov. It took 38 days for the
expedition to overcome the distance of 980 kilometers
between the Arctic cape (the archipelago Northern Earth) and the
Pole. Moreover, during the realization of the project the
unprecedented operation was carried out on aviation
maintenance of the expedition by helicopters.
During this flight a unique
scientific-practical program was realized which will help
to update modern scientific knowledge on ecology,
formation of climate on the Earth, abilities to live
in extreme conditions.
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