NASA Balloon Launch on PhotoPeach The unmanned balloon launch will be a test run to help NASA assess Wanaka’s suitability as a permanent launch site. The eight hour countdown and launch will be controlled from the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility in Texas. At 90m in diameter and 4000kg, this is no ordinary helium balloon. Once it’s inflated and released, it will rise at about 1000 feet (300m) per minute until it reaches 37km above the earth, where it will float for around 100 days before gently descending to land in South America. As this is a test run, the balloon won’t be carrying any scientific instruments. But if Wanaka is confirmed as a launch site, future balloons will carry equipment that will be used to investigate the origins of the universe; assess the effects of cosmic rays on the atmosphere and continue the hunt for previously undiscovered planets.