MALVERN-based research organisation QinetiQ is set to make history with a world-record-breaking attempt to take a manned balloon to the edge of space.

If the attempt is successful, the balloon will reach the highest altitude ever recorded - around 25 miles, or 132,000 feet, into the stratosphere. The current record is 113,740 feet.

QinetiQ, which is the larger part of the former Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) and carries out the bulk of the MoD's non-nuclear research, announced its sponsorship of the multi-million-pound project last week.

"This is an incredible project that pushes the boundaries of science and human experience," said QinetiQ's marketing director, Brenda Jones.

"We believe it will capture the world's imagination and prove to be one of the greatest feats seen so far in this millennium."

At peak altitude, the pilots, who will be in spacesuits, will be able to see the curvature of the Earth and the balloon will be floating in a virtually atmosphere-free environment.

The helium-filled balloon will be the biggest manned balloon in history - around 400-times the size of a normal hot-air balloon and standing as tall as the Empire State Building when it is launched.

Ms Jones said QinteiQ was Europe's largest independent science and technology business, with a store of scientific expertise that was acknowledged and admired world-wide.

"The synergy between QinetiQ and the project is obvious and we are delighted to be the sponsor," she said, adding the company planned to be "much more than just a badge" on the project, with the team working side-by-side with some of Britain's leading scientific experts.

The pilots, Andy Elson and Colin Prescot, are both commercial balloon pilots with 40-years experience between them.

They set the world endurance record for any aircraft in the Earth's atmosphere when they flew from Spain to the Pacific in 17 days, 18 hours and 25 minutes as part of their around-the-world attempt.

The launch date for QinetiQ 1, as the project is called, is set for between July and September 2002, with the exact date governed by the weather.

Challenges that QinetiQ will be working on between now and then include developing a technique to carry the cameras into space and instantly feed back pictures, tracking the balloon, testing the spacesuits and parachutes, radiation measurement, free-fall aerodynamics and the sea stability of the flight deck.