The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-01
OVER ALPS IN A BALLOON.
AERIAL VOYAGE OF SCIENTISTS
STUDYING METEOROLOGICAL
PHENOMENA.

Travelling More Ihan n vile a MIN
ute-At one Time the Air ship Fell
Faster Than the Sand which Had
Been Thrown Out-COuId Have
Gone on to Paris If They Had
Wanted to.
New York. Sept. pa report has just
been made of the most extraordinary bal
loon voyage on record. It is of the most
intense interest TO scientists and to every
one studying the problem Of aerial navi-
cation 1t sets aside one Of the objections
which have been offered to the flying ma
chine as q mode of travelling. by provid-
ing that man feels no serious discomfort
either from cold or from immense speed
when at a great hight. And there were
other scientific results of considerable i'm
portance which wiz be told of farther on
in this article. The story of the trip it.
self as another triumph of man over ma
ture is OF thrilling interest to everyone.
. -Four men in The balloon Vega crossed
the Alps from Stilten. in Switzerland, 10
Mt soule in France some distance north
Of Dijou. The speed was equal TO that of
the fastest European railway train. and al
times exceeded that Of the most rapid
American express. A distance of 142 miles
was covered IN 81 minutes.
The expedition was undertaken for pure
ly scientific purposes, The captain OF the
balloon was Prof. Ed spelterini, who has
made more than five hundred successful
balloon asCeusious lie was accompanied
by the eminent geoogst Prof. Albert
Helm. and Prof julius Maurer, the great
meteorologist One passenger was taken
along. student Of Prof. Helm The
project of ascending the Alps in a balloon
was preached as long ago as 1891, but II
was slow of realization Money had TO be
collected for the construction OF the spe-
cial balloon required and many other prep
aration were necessary.
An Especially Built Balloon.
The balloon was built for The purely sci
entific purpose OF the trip. The diameter
of the balloon when filed was about 60
feet; its circumference was 100 feet; capac-
ity 5000 cubic feet. 1t was made of Jape-
ncse pongee silk. of great strength, and
was built in As meridional chambers, con-
ssting of no less than 3l68 pieces Of silk.
The interior received six coats of Varnish
and the exterior four coats. The covering
net was made of Anjou-hemp treated with
rubber with 2l,5O4 meshes. The weight of
the balloon with anchor, ropes and all was
994 kilogram. The ballast scientific, in
etruments and passengers added 06 ko
gram, so that the balloon mad to list $3.50
kilogram as IL assembled IN air. IL re-
qulred five days TO fill the balloon with
gas, and then there was a delay Of three
days before the weather appeared favora-
bic. The wind must be In the proper di-
rection, and the air not too cloudy to pre-
vent exact observations. Pilot balloons
were sent up finally and showed that the
wind set in the proper direction to carry
the balloon directly over the Alps and the
Jura, l. e., southwest.
The Ascent
-Four men held the ropes of the captive
balloon, ready to loose them at the signal.
The passengers climbed into the car that
swung beneath il and threw out sacks of
ballast equal to their weight. Capt Spell
terini cried "Lachez tout Oct go alp and
the huge balloon majestically rose amid
an, shouts of thousands of spectators, for
scientists had come from all over Europe
10 see this experiment. But let Prof. Helm
tell of It in his own words:
1T was 1858 a. m. as the Vega rose into
the air AT first we assembled at the rate
OF over q yard q second, but soon COM
meuced to 20 faster. We felt the wind of
the valley no longer at 7,200 feet, but stood
still FOR moment poised IN air but the
next minute, ll06, we felt the southeast
wind of the upper air, and the balloon
darted to northwest at lightning speed in
straight line. The shadow of the ball
loon fell on the clouds with startling dis
tinctness.
Thrilling Moment.
and now we waited with bated breath
TO learn our fate. Would we be dashed
against the mountain by a powerful wind
current GRAND at 11:A our doubts were
settled as we scared above the highest
peak OF the mountain QO6l6 feeO. reaching
hight Of 1882 feet above sea level our
course did not diverge moment from a
straight line. When we were q. 800 feet oven
me valley we Travelled horizontally ten
feet a second; when we We're u 900 feet
nigh we moved horizontally thirty-three
feet a second, but now we went first AT
eighty-two feet, then at eighty-eight feet
a second over mile minute.
ne currents OF air in the valley give
not the least intimaton of the direction
or force of the upper currents. Our course
50 long as we were in the upper current
OF air, was astonishingly straight. for we
uiNerSed from the direct route in our
course hardly half mile to right or left.
we were borne by a mighty current of
the air-sea.
AT 1906 we were 1883 feet above sea
level and then We descended slightly. At
3;43 we reached the highest point attained
during our voyage. 22.44O feet
Might Have Gone TO Paris.
The balloon was in such good condition
that we could have stayed up in it all night
and we had plenty of ballast so the can.
tain asked us.
10 you want 10 travel all night?
glance at my map showed me thai
we We're moving direct for Paris If tbo
WIND stiil held. but we We're travelling so
last that we should be in Paris before
midnight and on the ocean before day.
break.
rms would never do, and as a descent
by night is accompanied by many dangers
we decided that we must land now ii at
all From 5.l3 60 4:23 we descended from
= 800 feet to 1920 feet, at Il rate Of 1853 a
minute Almost seven feet a second
Beneath us was a sea of mist.
IL COINS 100 fast, drop a sack of sand
over board-now another sackr the cap
tain shouted
The sun was hidden behind clouds. We
We're passing through a shower of sand for
the balloon was actually falling faster than
the sand we had thrown out. 1t was the
ll-osl Intensely thrilling ana dangerous
moment of the voyage. Could we ston her
lremendous dasoanl2 II rnt o..r. -....L-...