Hot Air Balloons

1700's

On September 19, 1783, a sheep, a duck, and a rooster were three passengers aboard the first hot air balloon called "Aerostat Reveillon." It was launched by Pilatre De Rozier, and crashed down 15 minuets later.

Two months later, on November 21, 1783, in a hot air balloon made by Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier the first manned attempt to fly in a hot air balloon was made. The hot air balloon was launched from the centre of Paris and flew for 20 minuets.

In 1785, a French balloonist, Jean Pierre Blanchard and his American co pilot, John Jefferies, took a big leap for long distance ballooning and flew over the English Channel. Later that year, the world's first balloonist Pilatre De Rozier, died in attempt to cross the English Chanel in a experimental hot air balloon which was a hydrogen balloon and a hot air balloon tied together that exploded half an hour after launch.

On January 7, 1793, Jean Pierre Blanchard flew the first hot air balloon in North America with George Washington present for launch.

Setting Records

Over a hundred years later, In the August of 1932, a Swedish Scientist made the first manned flight to the Stratosphere and set a new altitude record of 52,498 feet. Over the next few years, altitude records were set every couple of months. In 1935, an altitude record was set at 72,395 feet, the altitude was so high that the balloon Explorer 2, a gas helium model, used a pressurized chamber that proved that people can survive in extremely high altitudes that helped make space travel possible one day. The record and remained the highest for 20 years, but it was set yet again in 1960 by Captain Joe Kittinger with an altitude of 102,000 feet. Captain Joe Kittinger didn't ride back down on the balloon, he set another record for the highest parachute jump, and he was going so fast that he broke the sound barrier with his body.

The Atlantic and Pacific Challenges

The first successful flight over the Atlantic Ocean (The Atlantic Challenge) was made in 1978 by a balloon called the Double Eagle II. The Balloon had three passengers, Ben Abruzzo, Maxie Anderson, and Larry Newman, they set a new flight duration time of 137 hours.

Three years later in 1989, the first transatlantic (Pacific) crossing was made. The Double Eagle V launched from Japan and landed in California in 84 hours also setting a distance record at 5,678 miles. In 1999, one decade later, the first around the world trip was completed by Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones. Their flight started in Switzerland and ended in Africa. Their trip took 19 days, 21 hours, and 15 minuets.