Balloon Release
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A balloon release is a ceremonial event in which a number of
hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, an ...
- or
helium Helium (from el, ἥλιος, helios, lit=sun) is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas and the first in the noble gas group in the periodic table. ...
-filled
balloon A balloon is a flexible bag that can be inflated with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, and air. For special tasks, balloons can be filled with smoke, liquid water, granular media (e.g. sand, flour or rice), or light so ...
s are unleashed into the sky. Balloon releases can be done as a prayer ceremony, to create a
photo op A photo op (sometimes written as photo opp), short for photograph opportunity (or photo opportunity), is an arranged opportunity to take a photograph of a politician, a celebrity, or a notable event.flight safety Aviation safety is the study and practice of managing risks in aviation. This includes preventing aviation accidents and incidents through research, educating air travel personnel, passengers and the general public, as well as the design of airc ...
, and
wildlife conservation Wildlife conservation refers to the practice of protecting wild species and their habitats in order to maintain healthy wildlife species or populations and to restore, protect or enhance natural ecosystems. Major threats to wildlife include habita ...
issues.


Motivations

Akin to a
sky lantern A sky lantern (), also known as Kǒngmíng lantern (), or Chinese lantern, is a small hot air balloon made of paper, with an opening at the bottom where a small fire is suspended. In Asia and elsewhere around the world, sky lanterns have bee ...
ceremony of Chinese tradition, a group balloon release can serve as a quiet, prayerful group activity at a funeral or solemn occasion. Unlike sky lanterns, which float down after a short time, helium or hydrogen balloons quickly rise to heights in which they can no longer be seen. Balloon releases are also used in celebration, as a substitute to
confetti Confetti are small pieces or streamers of paper, mylar, or metallic material which are usually thrown at celebrations, especially parades and weddings. The origins are from the Latin ''confectum'', with ''confetti'' the plural of Italian ''co ...
, in order to avoid an immediate mess. A balloon race, or balloon flight contest, is a competition wherein the competitors attempt to send balloons as far as possible. It can be compared to a
rubber duck race A rubber duck race is a type of festival where thousands of rubber ducks race on a river, usually within the city. Normally they are fundraising events and the ducks are given numbers which enables the participants to "adopt" a rubber duck for ...
.
Postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...
s are attached to the balloons which are then released. The flight of the balloons cannot be influenced by the competitors. Instead, success in the contest is dependent on the wind conditions and on the location in which the balloon lands. The contest depends on the goodwill of passers-by to find the balloons and return the postcards. A prize may be awarded to the person whose balloon travels the furthest.


Trajectory

Helium balloons are claimed to reach a height of anywhere up to ten kilometres. It is also possible for a balloon, under the right circumstances, to reach equilibrium, and remain suspended in the air for some time, until the helium slowly diffuses out of the balloon. A balloon launched from a school in
Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
, England in December 2012 was found in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia in March 2013 having travelled .


Noted balloon releases

* 2011: A farmer from Stalisfield Green near Ashford in Kent, England, successfully claimed compensation, after one of his bullocks choked to death on the string of a balloon released by pupils at Lyndhurst Primary School in
Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...
, south-east London, over 50 miles away, as part of a
Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic episo ...
event. * 2016: In 2008 Radio City 2—a radio station in Liverpool, England—started annually releasing hundreds of balloons (with messages attached) from the roof of the Radio City 2 "in memory of loved ones that we miss at Christmas time." Despite sustained lobbying by the public in December 2016, DJ
Pete Price Peter Lawrence Price (the Lizard) (born 04 February 1946) is a British radio presenter best known for his work in Liverpool. He hosted the Sunday night talk radio show ''Pete Price: Unzipped'', which was broadcast across Liverpool sister stat ...
ignored the pleas and the balloon release went ahead at the end of the programme 'Remember A Loved One At Christmas'. Two leading diving journalists contacted Radio City 2's owner—
Bauer Media Group Heinrich Bauer Publishing (german: Heinrich Bauer Verlag KG), trading as Bauer Media Group, is a German multimedia conglomerate headquartered in Hamburg. It operates worldwide and owns more than 600 magazines, over 400 digital products and 50 ra ...
—appealing for this practice to be stopped. Bauer Media confirmed that no company within the Group would conduct a balloon release in the future and a donation would be made to
Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...
. * 2017: A three-year-old thoroughbred horse, 'Espoiro', known as 'Feisty', died as a direct result of a helium party balloon landing in her field. Her owner Jennifer Birtwhistle (a leading horse breeder) told ''
Horse & Hound ''Horse & Hound'' is the oldest equestrian weekly magazine of the United Kingdom. Its first edition was published in 1884. The magazine contains horse industry news, reports from equestrian events, veterinary advice about caring for horses, and h ...
'' magazine "God isn't sitting in his heaven gathering up all this airborne litter that is sent up with messages attached to it on pieces of string. It doesn't reach anyone, it is entirely self serving." * 2017: In March 2017
Poundbakery Poundbakery is a bakery chain in the United Kingdom, which specializes in savory products such as pies, pasties, sausage rolls, sandwich, and sweet products including doughnuts and muffins. It was established in Bolton, England England ...
headquarters released 500 orange and black balloons. Each balloon contained a voucher for a 'Go Large' free Poundbakery sandwich. Poundbakery subsequently apologised on 11 April 2017 and donated £1,000 to the British Divers Marine Life Rescue. * 2018: In February 2018
Quartz Travel Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical form ...
announced they would "work with Greenpeace to release 500 biodegradable balloons filled with messages as part of a campaign to reduce
plastic pollution Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are catego ...
at sea." Following mass lobbying by the public Quartz Travel (a British-based travel agent) subsequently cancelled the balloon release on 13 February 2018. * 2018: In February 2018 ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' released balloons during an episode of the soap to mark the death of a character. This occurred three days after the BBC's Director-General announced a three-step plan to remove single-use plastic from operations. "Like millions of people watching ''
Blue Planet II ''Blue Planet II'' is a 2017 British nature documentary series on marine life produced by the BBC Natural History Unit. Like its predecessor, ''The Blue Planet'' (2001), it is narrated and presented by naturalist Sir David Attenborough. After ...
'', I was shocked to see the avoidable waste and harm created by single-use plastic. We all need to do our bit to tackle this problem, and I want the BBC to lead the way. Tony Hall, BBC Director-General" * 2019: On Friday 1 March 2019 an estimated 700 people released balloons in Sunderland, England following the murder of teenager Connor Brown. This mass balloon release was conducted on the same day that the Independent reported that scientists have stated balloons pose the biggest risk of death for seabirds eating plastic.


Balloonfest '86

A balloon release in 1986 by the charity United Way Services of Cleveland, in Ohio, USA, was a fund-raising attempt to break the world record for the number of balloons in a single release. One-and-a-half million balloons were released, but an approaching weather front caused them to return to earth, covering the city in balloons, causing cars to crash, and hindering a coast guard rescue mission. It contributed to the deaths of two sailors on
Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...
(the wife of one victim sued the organizers, and settled out-of-court), resulted in injuries to horses, and caused traffic accidents. A runway at
Burke Lakefront Airport Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport is a public airport on the shore of Lake Erie, in the northeast part of downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It's classified as a general aviation airport and is an FAA designated reliever to Cleveland Ho ...
had to be closed. The
Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
no longer accepts balloon release records.


Industry code of conduct


The Balloon Council

The Balloon Council, an organization of balloon retailers, balloon distributors, and balloon manufacturers, has publicly come out against the practice of releasing balloons. Included in their list of "Smart Balloon Practices" is the message that balloons are "Worth the Weight," meaning that all balloons should be tied to a weight and not released outdoors. The campaign to end the release of balloons includes the hashtag #BeBalloonSmart and a cartoon character named Faraday, named after
Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...
, the inventor of the rubber balloon.


United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the National Association of Balloon Artists and Suppliers (NABAS) provide guidelines for appropriate balloon releases in order to minimize potential environmental impacts. These guidelines include the limit to the number of balloons that should be released, releasing only balloons made from appropriate material, and that no materials such as ribbons or strings are included or attached to the end of any balloons that are released.


Opposition


Environmental

A number of organisations (for example, in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, these include the
Marine Conservation Society The Marine Conservation Society is a UK based not-for-profit organization working with businesses, governments and communities to clean and protect the oceans. Founded in 1983, the group claims to be working towards "cleaner, better-protected, h ...
, the
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...
, the Tidy Britain Group, the National Farmers' Union and the
RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...
) oppose balloon releases, because of the visual impact of the fallen, deflated balloons, and the risk of harm to wildlife and domestic animals which they pose. For these reasons, balloon releases are prohibited in some jurisdictions. In May 2018 a peer-reviewed study by Delia M. Webb was published that revealed 2,223 pieces of balloon litter were found on 39 beaches across Cornwall between July and December 2016. The study entitled "Just a balloon? A local study of the extent and impacts of balloon litter on beaches" reported that some of the balloons found on Cornish beaches had travelled from other parts of the UK, Ireland and Europe.


Flight safety

Within many countries written permission is often required from the relevant airspace regulatory authority. In the UK this would be the
Civil Aviation Authority A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register. Role Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles, ...
, for releases over a certain number of balloons.


Overhead power lines

On 9 February 2018 rush-hour trains near Billericay, Essex were disrupted for more than two hours because 50 yellow and black balloons were tangled on overhead lines.


Helium scarcity

Helium is a natural atmospheric gas, but as a land-resource, it is limited. As of 2012 the United States National Helium Reserve accounted for 30 percent of the world's helium, and was expected to run out of helium in 2018. Some geophysicists fear the world's helium could be gone in a generation. For this reason, balloon releases are seen as a wasteful use of this limited resource.


Films

The documentary ''Rubber Jellyfish'' (2018) talks about and criticizes the actions of balloon releasing and how it contributes to pollution and animal death.


Virtual balloon race

As an alternative to a physical balloon race, a virtual balloon race involves imaginary balloons which are "launched" at a set date and place and allowed to "fly" for a set period such as a week, their route being calculated by a computer programme according to weather data. Charities can use this as a fund-raiser by allowing supporters to buy balloons and compete in the "race", with no harm done to wildlife or the planet. As no physical contact is involved this fund-raising method was useful for charities during the
lockdown A lockdown is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks (such as COVID-19) that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely. The term is used for a prison ...
of the 2020
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
when many other fund-raising events had to be cancelled. British marketing company Purepages, based in
Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish people, Flemish weavers settled in the area i ...
, has developed "the world's first 100% eco-friendly virtual balloon race platform", with software which allows purchasers to adjust the properties of their balloon to influence its prospects.


See also

*
Release dove A release dove is usually a small white domestic rock dove used for events such as public ceremonies, weddings and funerals. They typically have a symbolic meaning for the event. Subspecies and types Typically one or more white doves are re ...
*
21-gun salute A 21-gun salute is the most commonly recognized of the customary gun salutes that are performed by the firing of cannons or artillery as a military honor. As naval customs evolved, 21 guns came to be fired for heads of state, or in exceptiona ...
*
Sky lantern A sky lantern (), also known as Kǒngmíng lantern (), or Chinese lantern, is a small hot air balloon made of paper, with an opening at the bottom where a small fire is suspended. In Asia and elsewhere around the world, sky lanterns have bee ...
(also known as Chinese lantern)


References


External links

* The Balloons Blow organisation maintains
list of cancelled balloon releases
dating from 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Balloon Release Balloons (entertainment) Competitions Ceremonies Litter Plastics and the environment