| Short history of ballooning |
The story began in 1783. Two brothers, Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier, used a sphere made of paper and heated air as the source of lift. The Montgolfier´s brothers were directors of the family owned paper factory and scientists as well. The first Montgolfiers hot air balloon was flown free from Annonay on June 5, 1783.Later in September 19, 1783 the Montgolfier´s balloon with duck, rooster and sheep in a basket attached to the envelope launched in front of King Louis XVI. from Versailles.
Because the animals had returned safely, this meant that living beings could survive the flight in the air. Louis XVI. wanted to send two prisoners, but Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier, a professor of physics and chemistry, did not agreed that the king would allow two criminals the glory of being the first men to go into the atmosphere. Pilatre de Rozier wanted to go up himself. 
On November 21, 1783 the first man carrying aircraft departed earth at 1:54 P.M. from La Muettte, a royal palace in The Bois de Boulogne, Paris with Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier and marquis d´Arlandes onboard. The two men flew approximately twenty five minutes and landed about 8 km from the launch site. So the basics of ballooning were set.
Types of balloons The two most common types of balloons today are hot air balloons and gas balloons. Hot air balloons Hot air balloons derive lift by heating the air inside the envelope with heater. The main components of a modern balloon are envelope, basket and heating system. The envelope mostly made of nylon and polyamid is open at the bottom to be heated by flame. At the top of the envelope there is a deflation port, a large opening that allows hot air to escape while landing. The basket is made of rattan, not only for its romantic appeal, but also because of the flexibility of the material itself. The heating system consists of the heater, which burns the gas (propane) to heat the air inside the envelope, the fuel tanks carried in the basket and hoses connecting the heater and tanks. 
Gas balloonsThe main components of gas balloons are the envelope, net, load ring and basket.  The balloons are filled with gas, lighter than
air such as helium. On the top of the balloon there is a valve to allow gas to escape while landing.
The net covers the envelope and is attached to load ring, which carries the basket. The load ring is the interface between the envelope/net and the basket.
The Roziére The combination of gas and hot air balloon is called the Roziére after his inventor Jean Francois Pilatre de Roziér. During the day the sun heats the gas and gives it lift power, at night the air in the hot air envelope is heated with onboard heater to expand the contained the lifting gas. The Roziére balloon had been used by the Breitling Orbiter team of Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones to be the first who circumm navigate the Globe without landing.##Solárne balóny Výrobca teplovzdušných balónov Tracy Barners sníval o lietaní na slnečných balónoch. 16.mája 1973 uskutočnil prvý let na takomto balóne, ktorý sám navrhol a zostrojil. Balón bol zostrojený z čierneho polyetylénu a jeho stúpanie zabezpečovalo samotné slnko. Na jeho nafúknutie postačovalo len malé množstvo vzduchu, ktoré sa nahrialo slnkom. Tento proces bol síce veľmi zdĺhavý, ale nevyžadoval žiadne extra náklady. |