The balloon
The hot air balloon that we see is truly a marvel of science. Travelling the skies using just air is a great achievement. Any balloon that is used for flight has three main parts.
The basket – The bottom part of the balloon that carries the passengers is called the basket. It’s easy to see why; it is shaped like a basket after all! The baskets need to be strong and flexible so the material used for them are various types of cane, the popular of which are Kooboo and Palambang. They are available in different shapes and sizes, capable of carrying from 1 to up to 20 people. The major types of baskets are –
Open – Such baskets are in one piece and the pilot and the passengers are all housed in the same compartment.
T-partition – These baskets are partitioned so that there are separate compartments for the pilot, passengers and fuel.
The burner – The burner is akin to the engine of any aircraft. That is the part responsible for keeping the balloon in the air. There are many different types of burners available and the one to be used depends on the size of the balloon. Modern balloons use propane for the heating of the Sonoma balloon rides. The propane is stored in cylinders under high pressure. It flows in liquid form through tubes. These tubes are heated up, converting the liquid propane into gas which ignites propelling the balloon upwards.
The envelope – The balloon that we see is called the envelope. The material used for the manufacture of this envelope is nylon section called gores. The whole of the envelope is not made up of gores though. The lowermost part is made up of Nomex, an industry standard flame resistant material while the topmost portion is manufactured using hyperlast, a material that has been used for a long time.
Since 1993 Cloud 9 Balloon Flights has shown residence and visitors the hidden secrets of Sydney and the Hunter Valley. If you are looking to go on a hot air balloon ride there is no better place to plan your trip than at [http://www.cloud9balloons.com.au] Check out the various packages and book online. Happy flying!