Balloon pilots take aim at long-distance flight record

Posted on October 30, 2014 by LighterThanAirSociety

Hot air balloon dips close to the oceanSource: CTV News – ctvnews.ca

By Susan Montoya Bryan

An international team led by two veteran pilots has set its sights on breaking a pair of major ballooning records when it launches its helium-filled balloon from Japan in early 2015.

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Spaceport America may get near-space balloon flights

Posted on October 30, 2014 by LighterThanAirSociety

World View personnel prepare the company’s balloon smSource: Albuquerque Journal – abqjournal.com

By Kevin Robinson-Avila

Paying passengers may soon fly to the edge of space in massive balloons launched from Spaceport America.

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Principles of Aerostatics – A new book

Posted on October 29, 2014 by LighterThanAirSociety

aerostatics sqPrinciples of Aerostatics, a new book by John Taylor,  a lighter-than-air flight test engineer and consultant.

Principles of Aerostatics presents the complete theory of static lift for airships, aerostats and balloons.

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First Images of a Comet from a Stratospheric Balloon

Posted on October 29, 2014 by LighterThanAirSociety

Image aSource: The Applied Physics Laboratory of The Johns Hopkins University – jhuapl.edu

The images are the first ever taken of a comet from a stratospheric scientific balloon mission, and show that Siding Spring was undergoing an outburst event, during which it rapidly decreased in brightness over the course of just 30 minutes.

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Above and beyond: New surveillance system to guard against aerial, maritime threats

Posted on October 29, 2014 by LighterThanAirSociety

The aerostat — a large floating ballooSource: Channel NewsAsia – channelnewsasia.com

Singapore’s Aerostat System – a tethered balloon that uses low-level radar to detect threats as far as 200km away – will be deployed early next year.

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