l2p3

Iwaya sent up balloon after balloon, collected data, and made improvements.

He discovered that it was best to use balloons 1 to 2 meters in diameter.

In addition, he learned that the stratosphere, at 30,000 meters or more, was the best altitude.

With little interference from the atmosphere, sharp images could be obtained there.

He also calculated the speed of the camera's return to land.

It had to drop slowly, so as not to damage anything.

On his 11th attempt, he was finally able to take photographs from space.

Unfortunately, the pictures were too blurry.

Despite his disappointment, however, he took a more careful look at the images and found a good one.

It showed a vividly blue planet.

When he saw it, he felt a pure delight.