Experimental data on angular distributions of gamma-quanta emitted by
fragments of binary and ternary spontaneous fission of Cf-252 are anal
yzed. Their difference indicates that the fragment alignment is higher
in ternary fission than that in binary fission. Consequences of a pos
sible relation between the ternary fission mechanism and the excitatio
n of collective modes at the stage of descent from the barrier to the
scission point are discussed.