On November 11, 1935, the stratosphere balloon Explorer II rose from the floor of the Stratobowl to the world altitude record of 72,395 feet. The ascent was made for scientific research under the joint auspices of the U.S. Army Air Corps and the National Geographic Society, with Major General Oscar Westover, chief of Air Corps, Brigadier General Henry H. Arnold, assistant chief of Air Corps, Gilbert Grosvenor, president, and Lyman J. Briggs, chairman of the Committee on Research, associated with the effort. Captain Albert W. Stevens served as Air Corps commander and scientific observer, and Captain Orvil A. Anderson served as Air Corps pilot.