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path in order not to lose altitude, the desire to avoid serious cone
teonination of this aircraft, and the production of contrails by the
aircraft itself which filled the hasy hols in the cirrus, it was not
possible to hold what was probably the bombclond in view for Longer.
than about twenty mimtes.
At about this time the two recomaissance FA\G aircraft reported
"solid instrument conditions up to 30,000 feet (pressure) with cumloninbus heads protruding well above this altitude and a cirrus layer
beginning at 36,000 fact (pressure) and extending up toan estimated
55,000 fest".
These aircraft were able to see only an extremely small
edge of the cloud on the north side at 38,000 feet altitude that was
in a small break in the cirrus and another portion of tha cloud on ths
south side which was in another small break.
This portion was reported
to be not over 1/8 mile long and 1/2 mila wide.
They were not able to
renain under visual flying conditions while skirting the cloud at
40,000 feet, and furthermore, found that the space between 30,000 and
36,000 feet (pressure) was epproxinately 1/8 to 5/8 obscured by cumius
and atratoform clouds which afforded very little visibility between layers.
Por this reason it was decided not to have the director aircraft descend.
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It therefore remained at an altitude of 5,000 feat and made blind orbits
in the soup, generally east ani west ani more or less parallel with the
expected path of the cloud. The west end of this orbit brought it inte
& gama radiation field which, fraa the projected shear pattern of the
Cloud, probably originated from an upper layer of cloud.
of this arbit showed no traces of radiation.
The east end