This project will include the launch of a germanium gamma ray detector on a balloon to study the spectrum of emissions from the supernova 1987a. The expected radiation comes from the radioactive decay of cobalt-56. This isotope is believed by theorists to constitute as much as one tenth of a solar mass, and is one of the many products of the nucleosynthesis that is believed to occur in supernova. The flight of this instrument from Antarctica may make possible measurements of much longer duration than can be achieved from other locations. The project will also provide technical information on the resistance of the detector to the high cosmic radiation background. The title has been changed, with the permission of the proposer, to reflect a balloon launch from McMurdo rather than South Pole.
