The Piccard Gondola was the centerpiece of the "greatest human drama ever" when Dr. Auguste Piccard and his team tried to break the world altitude record by hydrogen-filled balloon at the 1933 exposition, A Century of Progress. The attempt failed, but Piccard later set the mark at 61,237 feet.
The craft also set a record in 1934 when chemist Dr. Jeannette Piccard, wife of Dr. Jean Piccard (the twin brother of Auguste), piloted the gondola to a height of 57,579 feet above sea level and became the first woman to ascend into the stratosphere. The craft was retired to the Museum of Science and Industry in 1935.
- Museum Hours
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- Monday – Saturday: 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Sunday: 11 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Open every day except Christmas Day
- Museum Location
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