A 5.5-in.-diameter f/0.8 telescope was flown in an Aerobee rocket. Detectors sensitive in the 1 to 3 and the 3 to 7 M region scanned the sky as the rocket rolled and tumbled. The scanning rate was too fast and erratic to definitely identify any discrete sources. Upper limits can, however, be placed on the infrared night-sky radiation density. They are 2X 10-12 erg/cc or 10 W/cm2 sr for the 1 to 3 ,` region and 2 X 10-Il erg/cc or 10- W/cm2 or for the 3 to 7 region. These values are three to five orders of magni- tude more precise than previous upper limits based on observations made through the atmosphere.
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Harwit et al. (1966) studied this question.