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    The First Balloon Flight

    The first ever hot-air balloon was made in 1782. Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier discovered it. It all started by Joseph throwing some scraps of paper into the fire. Suddenly Joseph cried out, "Sacre Bleu!". Then he decided to make a "flying balloon. He said that because hot air rises, it could lift things up. So they made a balloon and went outside and they put some straw in the basket. They set it on fire and it flew away.

    It landed in a field nearby. The man who owned the field thought that it was an alien.He started shouting. The next day everybody knew about the balloon and they told the King.

    'The Montgolfiere', by Kate They wanted to make a balloon big enough to fit poeople in.Many people said it was impossible. They made the balloon from pure silk and it was fifteen metres high. They also painted it like an Easter egg.

    On 19th September 1783, a sheep, duck and a rooster set off in the hot-air balloon.

    A few hours later there was a loud CRASH!!!! The balloon landed in a forest. The sheep and duck were O.K., but the rooster was hurt. Etienne was very upset, he loved the rooster. The doctor looked at him and said he was going to live. All the animals got a medal and a special barn.

    On 21st November 1783, a scientist went to visit Joseph and Etienne. He wanted to be the first man to go in a balloon. Etienne said no because it was too dangerous, but De Rozier would not give up. He said, "If animals can do it, man can too." So they made up a new balloon and Jean de Rozier was the first person to fly. This balloon was called Montgolfière.


    Our very own Hot Air Balloon


    We are making our own hot air balloon and hope to fly it on a nice fine day after the Young Scientists Exhibition. It is made from tissue paper and, when it is launched, we will tie a card to it with our names and address. Hopefully, it should travel quite far. This is a photo of how it looks at the moment. We haven't tried inflating it yet!

    Niamh


    The Bernoulli Effect | Leonardo da Vinci | Kites | The first Balloon Flight | Lindbergh and Earhart
    | The Wright Brothers | The Future