Probably one of the earliest of human wishes and the subject of endless endeavor is flight. More than the attendant romance to this possibility, it is the idea of utter freedom that makes flying so alluring and men have not slowed down in their quest to discover and use technology to make this dream come true. And he has, to some degree, successfully used his skill and knowledge by inventing the hot air balloon.
How these balloons rose to fame What we have today in terms of modern balloon technology we owe to the Josef and Etienne Montgolfier of Annonay, France who flew the first successful hot air balloon in 1783, with animals onboard as passengers. As paper manufacturers, the brothers had initially noticed that ash rose with the flames when they burned paper. When animals survived the flight, it was decided that humans can safely go onboard.
King Louis XVI, also known as Marie Antoniette's husband, declared that only condemned criminals should be allowed to man balloon flights. Two very brave men, Marquis Francois d'Arlandes and Pilatre de Rozier, a physicist, successfully lobbied to be allowed to participate in the first flight. Their balloons were made of cloth with hot air supplied by a grill.
The military connection The earliest recorded use of hot air balloons were those employed during the Shu era by Chinese General Zhuge Liang, a distinguished administrator and strategist. His unmanned balloons, called Kongming lanterns, were used by the military as a means to exchange signals with their comrades.
Manned use for military purposes was done by the French during the Revolutionary wars when they used a hydrogen balloon to spy on the Austrian army in 1794. Balloons were also used by the Confederate army during the American civil war, although they were unsuccessful and incompetent enough to be captured by the Union.
How balloons rise Today's balloons are almost similar to the ones flown during the early years, except that modern balloons use more durable and safer materials. Basically, a hot air balloon consists of the gondola, which carries the passengers and holds the heat source and the balloon or envelope which keeps the warm air contained. The cloth used for the balloon is usually made from nylon and the mouth closest to the flame is made from fire-resistant fabric.
A flying balloon is operated by partially inflating the envelope with cold air and then using propane burners to inflate the balloon through the opening or mouth. The heat source produces enough heat to create a difference in temperature between the air inside the balloon and the air surrounding it. When the air temperature inside the balloon is higher than the ambient air, it becomes lighter and rises, carrying its gondola and passengers with it.
The altitude a balloon can reach depends on the difference between the temperature inside the envelope and the surrounding air. Theoretically, the higher the temperature difference (with the inside envelope temperature higher than the ambient air), the higher the balloon will go. However, increase in temperature can cause faster degradation of nylon so internal temperature is limited to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Why hot air balloons are so popular Modern use of flying balloons is primarily recreational, although they are also used for other purposes, for example, as methods of transportation for scientific studies involving tree canopies and animal life at higher altitudes.
Hot air balloons have continued to attract new enthusiasts because they are relatively simple to operate and are provide an exhilarating experience coupled with spectacular views. They are also relatively smooth and quiet, aside from the sound of occasional bursts from propane burners.
Sport balloon highs The highest altitude ever achieved on a balloon was made by Vijaypat Singhania of Bombay, India, reaching 69,852 feet on November 26, 2005. He broke the previous record set by Per Lindstrand by 4,872 feet.
The farthest flight ever completed on a hot air balloon was made by the Virgin Pacific Flyer when Per Lindstrand and Richard Branson of U.K. flew to Northern Canada from Japan. They covered 7,671.91 km. on January 15, 1991.
The longest flight duration was clocked at 50 hours and 38 minutes. Two Japanese, Hirosuke Tekezawa and Michio Kanda completed this flight on January 2, 1997.
The largest balloon ever built was measured at 2,600,000 cubic feet and was used during the Virgin Pacific Flyer record-setting flight. The manned flight also recorded the highest ground speed at 394 km per hour.
On occasion I’ve thought it’d be a great idea for my family and me to ride in glass elevators, take rides on Ferris wheels (large or small), check out revolving restaurants atop towers – not only is this alone terrifying, vertigo also gets thrown in for good measure. Then there was my absolute fear of flying which thankfully has been dealt with successfully.
Hot air ballooning is a different kettle of fish. Now I know hot air balloons fly (sort of) however there are no in-flight rations, flight attendants, movies, headsets, or pressurized cabins. There is just a big balloon (also called an envelope – I paid attention during the pre-flight briefing), a basket, a gas burner and a group of excited people. To me this was not flying, more like drifting and floating randomly above the earth.
What possessed me to voluntarily take a hot air balloon flight I’ll never know.
A flight was booked and as luck would have it, perfect weather conditions. We arrived at the departure point on a cool, crisp morning before the sun rose. The other passengers had already arrived and were eagerly awaiting the pre-flight briefing before take-off.
That was the good bit.
Fear washed through me, it became difficult to breathe, and my heart was pounding rapidly. It took supreme effort to keep my panic in check and instead, not wishing to put a damper on anyone’s enthusiasm, tried to appear as nonchalant as possible.
As time for take-off approached my fear intensified. Finally, as the ropes were released from the basket and the balloon slowly made its way upward, my knees turned to jelly and the urge to rid myself of the previous night’s dinner became overwhelming.
Totally trapped I silently screamed as we rose higher and higher from the ground.
What did I do next to overcome this panic?
I changed my state.
I remembered to breathe, and with that was able to centre myself (knowledge of meditation helps!) to step fully into the present moment. It also helped to shift my focus and become more curious, about the purple hills I could see on the horizon.
My focus then shifted to experiencing how serene it was up in the sky, only occasionally hearing the sound of the burner as it blasted hot air into the balloon above.
From experiencing this serenity my focus turned to the burner and feeling the heat of the flames.
Happy with experiencing what I was, I began asking myself probing questions about my fear. With each answer I would then ask “and what is important about that?"
Remaining centred and controlling my breathing, I continued to answer each question fully to myself until there was nothing left to ask.
From answering my own questions I discovered my fear was based on the fact that there was no jet engine, steering wheel, seat belts, escape chute and we were in a basket attached to a really big balloon!
From those answers I then:
* Determined that the likelihood of disaster was minimal to nil.
* Knew the present moment was the safest place for me.
* Future paced me. I imagined myself eating my champagne breakfast with the other passengers after the balloon flight, and retelling my story.
* Realised I was actually having an experience of a lifetime which I probably will never do again and decided to make the most of it.
Not only that, the captain seemed to know what he was doing (always encouraging), I knew the equipment was in great shape (I had a good look), and there was someone following the balloon in a vehicle below.
Taking several deep breaths, I refocused on my internal world and connected with peace again, silently giving thanks to my years of meditation practise.
At last I was able to truly enjoy this exhilarating experience! The peace and tranquillity above the earth with the sun rising in the East, and the green rolling hills below was absolutely awesome – I was in heaven!
Being in the present moment, focusing on controlled breathing, as well as becoming centred helped enormously in dealing with my anxiety. Not only that by asking the question “and what is important about that?" got to the heart of my fear.
Try asking yourself that question sometime when a need crops up. You might be surprised as what you discover about yourself.
Both Thomas Salathe & Michaela Scherr are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Thomas Salathe has sinced written about articles on various topics from Stress Management, Cars and Gastric Bypass. Thomas Salathe is the owner and designer of Hot Air Ballooning 4 U web Site. A long term fascination in the science and romance of flight and in particular Hot Air Ballooning is behind this web site.. Thomas Salathe's top article generates over 5400 views. to your Favourites.