How do high altitude balloons work?

As a weather balloon rises into high altitudes, where air pressure decreases, the helium or hydrogen pressure inside the balloon increases and expands the balloon. This way the balloon and the radiosonde can rise at a consistent pace high into the atmosphere.

What challenges are there with high altitude balloon flights?

These challenges include (a) surviving the mechanical rigors of the flight such as potential jet stream turbulence on ascent, fall-induced turbulence (AKA “post-burst chaos”) during the descent, and a parachute landing, (b) operating successfully in the harsh conditions of near-space including low pressure, low …

Why is it so hard to get out of the atmosphere?

Gravity will pull us back down to earth, so the only way to get outside of the atmosphere would be to go fast enough that this gravitational acceleration is outpaced by the curvature of the earth.

What happens to balloons that fly into the sky?

One is that atmospheric pressure is dramatically reduced at high altitudes, so a helium balloon expands as it rises and eventually explodes. If you inflate a balloon beyond its limits at room temperature, it will break into small pieces up to about ten centimetres long.

What happens when a balloon is released into the atmosphere?

A measured amount of helium is put into the balloon that will give it enough lift to get off the ground and ascend to the desired float altitude. As the balloon rises, the gas inside the balloon expands because the atmospheric pressure surrounding the balloon drops.

Why do high-altitude balloons pop?

As the balloon ascends, the pressure of its environment decreases, and the balloon begins to expand. This expansion continues until the material of the balloon is stretched to its breaking point, causing the balloon to burst. This typically occurs at stratospheric altitudes between 30 and 35 km.

What happens when you release balloons into the sky?

In a website blog, the agency says: balloons that are released into the air don’t just go away, they either get snagged on something such as tree branches or electrical wires, deflate and make their way back down, or rise until they pop and fall back to Earth where they can create a lot of problems.

What is the purpose of a high altitude balloon?

High-altitude balloon. The most common type of high-altitude balloons are weather balloons. Other purposes include use as a platform for experiments in the upper atmosphere. Modern balloons generally contain electronic equipment such as radio transmitters, cameras, or satellite navigation systems, such as GPS receivers.

Could a helium balloon float all the way to space?

Could a helium balloon float all the way up into space? A helium-filled balloon can float very high up into the atmosphere, however, it cannot float up into outer space. The air in Earth’s atmosphere gets thinner the higher up you go. The balloon can only rise up until the atmosphere surrounding it has the same weight as the helium in the balloon.

What are the world records for high altitude balloon flights?

Notable crewed high altitude balloon flights include three records set for highest skydive, the first set by Joseph Kittinger in 1960 at 31,300m for Project Excelsior, followed by Felix Baumgartner in 2012 at 38,969m for Red Bull Stratos and most recently Alan Eustace in 2014 at 41,419m.

How high can a helium balloon rise?

This happens at about a height of 20 miles (32 kilometers) above Earth’s surface. So, this is as far as a helium balloon can rise. Outer space starts somewhere around 600 miles (960 kilometers) above Earth’s surface.