It is not possible for a hot air balloon to reach outer space, because the atmosphere where it is flying is not thick enough for the balloon to reach orbital velocity.
The balloon’s buoyancy will then not be able to counteract the force of gravity pulling it towards the ground.
But if the atmosphere was thick enough, the balloon would be able to reach high enough speeds that it will break free from the atmosphere and into space. Hot air balloons are man-made machines that use heated air to fly.
They have been used for recreation, sport, tourism, and scientific research. Many of us may think that hot air balloons float in space, or orbit around the earth. But in fact, they don’t.
They float in the atmosphere, which is the layer of air that surrounds the earth. The atmosphere is made up of air, and the hot air balloons fly by using this layer. In addition, hot air balloons can fly into the stratosphere, which is one of the layers of the atmosphere.
According to NASA, hot air balloons or airships do not fly in space, but they can reach the stratosphere, which is around 20 miles above the earths surface.
The hot air balloon can reach 160,000 feet where the temperature is around -50 degrees Fahrenheit. (These temperatures are Celsius, which is 5 degrees lower than the Fahrenheit temperature).
The air density is extremely low at this altitude; it is less than one percent of the air density at sea level.
How to pilot a hot air balloon
A hot air balloon is a lighter than air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains a heat source (the burner) and a quantity of air at low pressure (the lift gas).
The first step to piloting a hot air balloon is to make sure that your balloon is safe for flight. You should check for holes, and make sure that your release device works.
Always check the weather, and make sure that you are not flying in a storm, or near an airport. This is important because airplanes and helicopters are not usually allowed to fly in the same airspace as hot air balloons.
The envelope provides buoyancy, and the lift gas is heated so as to become less dense than the surrounding air, causing the balloon to float in the air.
Hot air balloons are often seen as an unconventional form of transportation, but anyone can learn how to pilot one, regardless of their age, gender, or physical ability. Since they don’t require fuel, hot air balloons are very cost-efficient to operate, and are also environmentally friendly.
One of their other major benefits is that they are a lot safer than flying in a plane. In many ways, piloting a hot air balloon is like driving a car.
You need to be able to steer it in the right direction and have accurate knowledge of the route. But it is also important to know how to judge the weather, and know the right conditions for flying.
Launching and landing a hot air balloon
Want to experience a bird’s eye view of the world? There’s only one way to do it: in a hot air balloon. It’s the most common way to enjoy the amazing view the Earth has to offer, and hot air ballooning is an activity that everyone should try at least once in their lives.
How does it work, you ask? A hot air balloon is a large, bag-like structure made of a synthetic material.
It is inflated by forcing heated air into it, which causes the balloon to float into the air. Piloting a hot air balloon is surprisingly easy. When you’re in the air, a hot air balloon acts like a glider. But the real challenges come before launch and after landing.
Takes months to prepare a balloon for flight. First, a crew fills the balloon’s envelope with a mixture of hot air and helium. (The heated air quickly expands to lift the balloon off the ground, while the helium makes the balloon light enough to fly.)
The crew also adds the basket, the burners, the propeller, and the landing gear. Launching a hot air balloon is a tricky business.
The basket of a hot air balloon rises as the air inside the balloon is heated. As the balloon rises, it loses heat, so it needs more heated air to maintain altitude. If the envelope gets too cold, the balloon will sink. The balloon’s pilot and crew are on hand to help out if problems occur.
The pilot is in charge of handling the balloon, while the crew handles the passengers and ballast. Ballast is anything portable that can be dropped out of the balloon to lighten its load and raise the balloon’s altitude.
The crew releases hot air from the balloon to prevent it from rising too high. The pilot and crew stay with the balloon until it lands safely.
How do hot air balloons fly in space
The idea of flying a hot air balloon in space may seem as impossible as flying through a wormhole to a galaxy far far away. But a team of scientists have just recently launched a balloon into space. The balloon was launched into space from a NASA facility in Greenbelt, Maryland.
The balloon reached a height of 80,000 feet, which is comparable to the cruising altitude of a jet plane. It was launched to test a new technology that might one day enable high-altitude balloons to remain in the air for weeks or months.
A hot air balloon is lighter than air, so it floats upwards. As the hot air in the balloon expands, it becomes less dense than the surrounding air in the atmosphere.
Since hot air is less dense than cold air, there is a net upwards buoyant force on the hot air balloon.
This force is greater than the weight of the balloon and the weight of everything inside it, so the balloon rises. A balloon rises because the hot air inside the balloon is less dense than the air outside the balloon.
I’m Annie, a twenty-something year old girl who loves hot air balloons. So much so, that I have a full time job as a Flight Instructor and it is all I love talking about. Something about being up there in the elevated altitudes helps all my stresses float away!
