The Origin of the Hot Air Balloon

How wonderfully exciting. I have never been on one but I have loved hot air balloons since I was a child. The vibrant colors are just simply beautiful. The thought of sweeping across the sky in a basket just amuses me. I thought that this would be the perfect article to take us back to the history of this amazing man made phenomenon.

November 1783 marks the beginning for the hot air balloon. In France Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois Laurent d’Arlandes were the first humans to ride a hot air balloon. This took place October 19, 1783. It was invented by the Montgolfier brothers that same year.

Hot air balloons actually come from ancient China. During the three Kings era the Chinese used these balloon for military signaling. If you take an egg, remove the contents through a hole and put fire in the hole, the air will cause the egg to float.

Early references to the hot air balloon can be found in the book of Exodus from the Holy Bible. Exodus 16:14 – (Rashi’s translation) Even were you to fill an eggshell with dew and close up its opening and place it in the sun, it will, on its own, rise into the air. Now here is what the Bible says: And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.

A balloon can either use a wicker basket or a capsule to carry passengers. It all depends on the distance and altitude. There is a bag, called an envelope, that consists of heated air. This envelope allows the balloon to be steady or buoyant while in flight. Nomex, which is the material that makes up this envelope is also fire resistant. It is close to the burner flame. Some of the envelopes have unique shapes as well. There are also hopper balloons which carry one passenger. That is similar to a parachute.

Hot air balloons were also used in the military. During the Revolutionary Wars. The French used a tethered hydrogen balloon to spy out the Austrian Army, in 1794. Thaddeus S.C. Lowe used them during the American Civil War.

In the UK Bristol Belle created the first ‘modernized’ hot air balloon. There are over 7,500 hot air balloon that are used for recreation, in the US alone. The world record height of a hot air balloon reached 69,849 feet. The furthest flight was 4,767 miles.

The hot air balloon is with no doubt an exciting way to see the world and allow your senses to go farther then you ever imagined!