Filling A Hydrogen Balloon, 19th Century
by Science Source
Title
Filling A Hydrogen Balloon, 19th Century
Artist
Science Source
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Jacques Alexandre Cesar Charles (November 12, 1746 - April 7, 1823) created a balloon designed for passengers using hydrogen for buoyancy. It was flown less than a month after the famous Montgolfier hot air balloon flight, on December 1, 1783. Gas balloons have greater lift for a given volume, so they do not need to be so large, and they can also stay afloat much longer than hot air. Hydrogen gas dominated ballooning for the next 200 years. In the 19th century, it was common to use town gas to fill balloons; this was not as light as pure hydrogen gas, having about half the lifting power, but it was much cheaper and readily available. Hydrogen soon became the most common lifting gas for both balloons and, later, airships. But hydrogen itself is flammable and, following several major disasters in the 1930s, it fell out of use. This image has been color-enhanced.
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September 25th, 2016
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