Hot Air
Balloons do! See lots of them at Plano's
Balloon Festival September 21-23, 2007.
Signs posted by Sci-Tech Discovery Center at the festival will provide
explanations for the science behind hot air balloons.

Heating the air inside a balloon makes it
less dense than the outside air, allowing it to lift off. A balloon stays afloat in air, like a boat in
water, because its volume, shape and lighter air provide an upward force, or
buoyancy.

Air
is always moving even though it might not seem windy. Air molecules move at over 1,000 miles per
hour.

The sun’s light scatters as it shines through
the atmosphere. Blue light scatters more
than other colors because of its shorter wavelength. Why don’t we see violet since it is the
shortest in the visible spectrum? Our brains
interpret blue better.

Pilots fly balloons in the morning or evening
because the air is more stable. Heat
absorbed during the day by things on Earth can cause unstable wind in the
middle of the day.

Propane burners heat the air inside a balloon
to make it lighter than the outside air.
A typical hot air balloon holds 65,000 cubic feet of air heated to about
212° F.

Hot air balloons don’t have steering
wheels. Instead, pilots either release
hot air to descend - or heat more air to climb - to a wind current blowing in
the direction and speed they prefer.
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