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Show Frogmen, looting like undersea monsters, are shown as they glide along the bottom of the sea in search of knowledge for the National Geographic Society. to Road Adventure High y DEANE aid DAVID HELLEI 3 'Vt t I zTilrf' ort-a- W f do O Q descent into ocean depths. 2. AstronI. Dr, William Beebe, right, stands beside bathysphere after 3,000-foomers make pictures of nebula like this with telescopes. 3. A diver "dances" with a Mediterranean octopus. ot Inlying the banner of the National Geographic Society, explorers for the last 68 years have sought out natures mysteries in nearly every corner of the earth and above and below it, as well. The largest educational and scientific organization in the world, the society today lists a membership of more than 2,250,000. Its flags have been carried by hundreds of major exploratory expeditions and countless minor ones. A current society expedition is mapping the oceans of the world. Aqualung divers with special breathing devices are scouring the ocean bottom to uncover natures fascinating underwater secrets. This is in the tradition which sent the National Geogiaphic banner with Dr. William Beebe when he rode his bathysphere 3.028 feet into the murky depths of the ocean near Bermuda in 1934. At the other extreme, the societys flag also flew on the balloon Explorer II which soared 72,395 feet into the stratosphere in 1935, carrying Army Captains Albert W. Stevens and Orvil A. Anderson to a record which stood until just recently. There, high above our globe, the two men took the first photos showing the curvature of the earths sur face and the black stratospheric sky. The society also sponsored the first comprehensive project, which uncovered hundreds of secrets of the universe around us. Weather doesnt faze the societys expeditions sky-mappi- ng either. Admiral Byrd carried the banner on his explorations of the frozen wastes of both the North and South Poles. Versatility is a common ingredient of the societys intrepid adventurers. They have been known to travel by dugout canoe, ox cart, or camelback to the most inaccessible reaches of the earth. Family Weekly Mayazine, December 16 1956 7 |
