Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-15
By w. r. G. Latson, M. D.

nALLOONlNG has become a popular sport; 1t
% is 6guratvely, as well as literally in the air.
On every hand we hear talk about aerial voy-
ages Everybody knows what a balloon is, and
most people have general idea to the manner in
which balloon is handled; but regards the posi-
bilites of the balloon how far it 60, hov fast it
travel, how high above the earth it fly. these
are questions that few could answer
All have read Jules Verne's absorbing but i'm
possible story, Five Weeks in Balloon; but few
realize that no balloon could by any chance
main SO long in fight All have heard about that
gritty and persevering youngster Santos Dumont,
who first to sail round the Eiffel Tower, and
about dozen other aeronautS who have sailed fast
and far through the air buoyed up by the big slken
gas bag and propelled by rapidly revolving fans.
But few realize how little these achievements have
added to the real conquest of the air Few realize
that these drigble balloons in reality only fair
weather craft and that if old Boreas the God of the
Winds turned himself loose these poor little balloons
would be as much at his mercy as feather from
eagle in his flight. This is well shown in the
lamentable destruction of Count zeppelin's fourth
airshp, of which shall give account later.
In this article hope to give fair idea of the pos
sblities of the balloon, concerning its powers of
extended fight and it's ability to lift itself into space
together with some little account of the few gigantic
balloons that have been constructed
As to the first question, l may say at once that
no balloon SO far known, has sustained itself
in the air for more than fortyeight hours; that
balloon has ever travelled in single flight more than
a thousand miles; and that no living man has ever
been lifted more than seven miles above the earths
surface though unnamed balloons, as will be seen,
have reached an altitude of fifteen miles.
The Highest Ascensions
HOW far man rise above the earth? The ques-
! ton has interested balloonsts almost from the
first ascension, and many efforts have been made to
establish record for lofty fights.
The dangers of a very high ascension are many
and various In the first place, it must be remeni-
bered that at the level of the earths surface the
atmosphere is pressing the balloon with weight
of about fifteen pounds for every square inch of its
surface AS the balloon rises, however, the air
grows thinner, and the pressure the silk bag is
rapidly reduced; until at height of one mile it
is only half what it at the earths surface.
At two miles the pressure is just half what it
was at one mile; that is to say, instead of bearing
against every square inch of its surface weight of
fifteen pounds, the balloon is resisting an atmos-
pherc pressure of only and three quarters
pounds At elevation of three miles the pressure
of the air is divided again; and for every mile
of altitude.
As the pressure Of the atmosphere on the bal
bon decreases the balloon expands; until, if the
ascension is made too rapidly if great skill and
care are not used, there is great danger that the
pressure of the expanding gas contained in the silk
may rupture the balloon
The bursting of balloon in mid air is not neces-
sarily fatal or dangerous accident. In fact,
every balloon is provided with what is called rip