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Hot air balloons are the oldest successful human flight technology, dating back to the Montgolfier brothers' invention in France in 1783. The first manned flight was made on November 21, 1783, in Paris by Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes.

Balloons were the first manifestation of Siege of Paris in 1871. They were also used for observation of trench warfare in World War I.

A hot air balloon is a cloth bag, open at the bottom, with a large basket carrying the passager and a heater suspended just below the bag opening. The heater warms the air inside the balloon, making it lighter than the surrounding atmosphere, and causing the balloon and its cargo to rise.

Modern hot air balloons are usually made of synthetic fabrics in order to reduce weight. The heater is a flame-thrower type furnace fueled by propane gas stored in pressurized bottles. The direction of flight depends on the wind, but the altitude of the balloon can be controlled either by changing the temperature of the heater or, if passengers need the balloon to rise rapidly, by throwing ballast out of the balloon. The top of the balloon generally has a flap of fabric that can be pulled open immediately to release hot air in an emergency or for better control of the descent. The flap is pulled open completely to collapse the balloon after landing.

The lift of the balloon is determined by the temperature difference between the inside and outside air. On a hot afternoon, the balloon will not reach too great of an altitude before the balloon fabric begins to deteriorate under the high temperature. Hence, most hot air balloon launches are done in cold climate or at dawn before the air temperature rises to maximize the lift without compromising the longetivity of the equipment.

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As a sport, a typical hot air balloon launch starts by unrolling the balloon on the ground. A gasoline powered fan is used to blow cold air into the bag. The cold air inflates the balloon partially to hold its shape before the flame thrower is aimed at the center of the cavity to heat up the air inside. A crew member holds on to the a rope that ties to the top of the balloon, and controls its rise by slowly releasing the rope. Once the balloon is upright, the pilot and passengers hop into the basket. When everything is ready, more flame is thrown into the center of the balloon and it lifts off gradually. The rest of the crew will pack up the equipment and clean up the launch site. Then they hop into a pickup truck and chase after the balloon. When the balloon has finally landed, the bag is rolled up, the burner and the basket are picked up by the chase crew.

In competition, the pilots need to be able to read different wind directions at different altitude. Some experienced pilots are able to take a flight in one direction, rise to a different altitude to catch wind in a returning direction. With experience, luck and the right conditions, some pilots are able to control a precision landing at the destination. In some rare occasions, they may be able to return to the launch site at the end of the flight.

One attractive aspect of a hot air balloon ride is the exceptional calmness and the birds-eye views. Since the balloon moves with the wind, the passengers feel absolutely no wind during the flight. Recent balloons have been made in fantastic shapes, such as hot dogs, rocket ships, as well as the shapes of commercial products.

The dangerous aspects of the sport include excessive (vertical or horizontal) speed during landing, entangling high voltage power lines and in rare occasions, mid-air collisions that may collapse the balloon.

In the United States, hot air balloon pilots must have an FAA license.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Hot_air_balloon"