Flying high

Flinders University in South Australia has bought its own
high altitude aircraft. The plane, capable of flying up to eight hours at 50 000
feet, will be used for remote sensing and for atmospheric research such as the
study of thunderstorms and clouds. It has been purchased from the German
company, Grob, as part of a recent A$8.5 million grant to the Flinders
Institute for Atmospheric and Marine Sciences. Universities, the CSIRO, industry
and the Bureau of Meteorology will use the single-engined, two-seater plane. The
plane, which has a 33 metre wingspan, will be delivered next year.