Jean Felix Piccard (January 28, 1884 in
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...
, Switzerland – January 28, 1963 in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
), also known as Jean Piccard, was a
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
-born
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
chemist, engineer, professor and high-altitude
balloonist
In aeronautics, a balloon is an unpowered aerostat, which remains aloft or floats due to its buoyancy. A balloon may be free, moving with the wind, or tethered to a fixed point. It is distinct from an airship, which is a powered aerostat that ...
. He invented clustered
high-altitude balloon
High-altitude balloons are crewed or uncrewed balloons, usually filled with helium or hydrogen, that are released into the stratosphere, generally attaining between above sea level. In 2002, a balloon named BU60-1 reached a record altitude of .
...
s, and with his wife
Jeannette, the plastic balloon. Piccard's inventions and co-inventions are used in balloon flight, aircraft and
spacecraft
A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, p ...
.
Family
Piccard and
Jeannette Ridlon met at the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
where he taught and she received her master's degree. They married and had three sons, John, Paul and
Donald
Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...
, and also had foster children.
Stratosphere flight
![Jean-Piccard-from video](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Jean-Piccard-from_video.png)
Piccard was the co-pilot for his wife Jeannette on the third and final voyage of the ''Century of Progress''. The largest balloon in the world was conceived for him to fly at the
World's Fair
A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...
in 1933 but was flown there by US Navy pilots who were licensed.
After this flight he created the liquid oxygen converter when the liquid failed to vaporize on descent after the cabin doors were open.
Piccard developed a frost-free window, that was used on this flight and later by the Navy and Air Force in the
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...
or
B-26 Marauder
The Martin B-26 Marauder is an American twin-engined medium bomber that saw extensive service during World War II. The B-26 was built at two locations: Baltimore, Maryland, and Omaha, Nebraska, by the Glenn L. Martin Company.
First used in t ...
. He used
blasting cap
A detonator, frequently a blasting cap, is a device used to trigger an explosive device. Detonators can be chemically, mechanically, or electrically initiated, the last two being the most common.
The commercial use of explosives uses electri ...
s and
TNT
Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...
for releasing the balloon at launch and for remote release of external ballast from inside the sealed cabin. This was the first use of
pyrotechnics
Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating such things as fireworks, safety matches, oxygen candles, explosive bolts and other fasteners, parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, quarrying, and demolition. ...
for remote-controlled actuating devices in
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
, an unpopular, revolutionary idea at the time. Later his student
Robert R. Gilruth
Robert Rowe Gilruth (October 8, 1913 – August 17, 2000) was an American aerospace engineer and an aviation/space pioneer who was the first director of NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center, later renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.
He worked ...
, who became the director of the
NASA Manned Spacecraft Center
The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in honor of the late ...
, approved and used them in
spacecraft
A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, p ...
.
Th
July 21st, 1952 issue of The Canberra Timesnewspaper printed an incorrect front-page article in which Dr. Piccard claimed it would be possible for humans to fly to Mars with balloons as early as 1954, if anyone was willing to invest $250,000. Dr. Piccard had claimed he would study the light from Mars through a spectroscope to try to find evidence of oxygen and water at a high altitude to ensure his measurements were as precise as possible.
Plastic balloons
In 1935 and 1936, to reduce weight and thus enabling a balloon to reach higher altitudes,
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
balloon construction began independently by
Max Cosyns
Max Cosyns (29 May 1906 – 30 March 1998) was a Belgian physicist, inventor, explorer and speleologist.
Early life and education
Max Cosyns was Auguste Piccard's assistant at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and on 18 August 1932 par ...
in Belgium,
Erich Regener
Erich Rudolf Alexander Regener (12 November 1881 – 27 February 1955) was a German physicist known primarily for the design and construction of instruments to measure cosmic ray intensity at various altitudes. He is also known for predicting ...
in Germany, and Thomas H. Johnson and Jean Piccard, then at the
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a science museum and the center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memori ...
's
Bartol Research Foundation
The Bartol Research Institute (formerly the ''Bartol Research Foundation'') is a scientific research institution at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Delaware. Its members belong to the faculty of the University of Delaw ...
in
Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
Swarthmore ( , ) is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Swarthmore was originally named "Westdale" in honor of noted painter Benjamin West, who was one of the early residents of the town. The name was changed to "Swarthmore" after the es ...
. Johnson suggested
cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria, and liquid water makes it useful for food packaging. Cellophane is highly permeable to water vapour, but may be coated w ...
to Jean Piccard.
Piccard with his wife co-invented the plastic balloon
and he designed and on 24 June 1936 flew a cellophane balloon built by his students. The balloon was unmanned, 25 feet (7.6 meters) wide, and made of tapered 33-foot (10-meter)
gores and one-inch (2.54-cm)
3M Scotch transparent tape. Jean Barnhill, Harold Larson and Lloyd Schumacher cut the gores that fit together like an "orange peel." Harold Hatlestad built the radio equipment and Robert Silliman built the
telemeter
Telemetry is the in situ collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Greek roots ''tele'', "remote", and ' ...
that sent temperature and pressure data back. Robert Hatch and Silliman maintained radio contact from a station on the roof of the university armory until the radio's battery froze from insufficient insulation.
The balloon floated at 50,000 feet, and in ten hours traveled over 600 miles to near
Huntsville, Arkansas
Huntsville is a city in and county seat of Madison County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 2,879 at the 2020 census, up from 2,346 in 2010. During the American Civil War in 1862, it was the site of what became known as the Huntsville ...
.
Cluster balloons
Developed with John Akerman of the University of Minnesota and piloted by Jean Piccard in 1937 in
Rochester, Minnesota
Rochester is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Olmsted County. Located on rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota, the city is the home and birthplace of the renowned Mayo Clinic.
Acco ...
, the first multi-celled balloon was called ''The Pleiades'' and was made of 98
latex rubber
Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well.
In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosper ...
balloons. In a letter to Robert Gray of the Dewey and Almy Chemical Co. later published in ''Time'' magazine, Piccard describes how he broke balloons with a hunting knife and revolver to control his descent. A TNT charge released the cluster as he expected but sent burning
excelsior
Excelsior, a Latin comparative word often translated as "ever upward" or "even higher", may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Literature and poetry
* "Excelsior" (Longfellow), an 1841 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
* ''Excelsior'' (Macedo ...
down that destroyed the first ''Pleiades''. He suggested to Gray that
rock wool
Mineral wool is any fibrous material formed by spinning or drawing molten mineral or rock materials such as slag and ceramics.
Applications of mineral wool include thermal insulation (as both structural insulation and pipe insulation), filt ...
in place of excelsior would prevent similar accidents in the future.
Balloon research stopped for the most part during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
In February 1946 with
Otto C. Winzen, Jean Piccard proposed manned flight to the US Navy using clustered balloons made of thin plastic. In June the Office of Naval Research approved ''Project Helios'' and that year
General Mills
General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...
and the University of Minnesota contracted to build a cluster of 100
polyethylene
Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging ( plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bo ...
balloons for atmospheric research.
''Helios'' was designed to reach 100,000 feet for ten hours with a payload of instruments.
Jean Piccard helped Winzen design the
Skyhook polyethylene balloons that replaced ''Project Helios'' in 1947. Skyhook balloons were used unmanned for atmospheric research by the Navy and for manned flights by the
US Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
.
Later Jean Piccard developed electronics for emptying ballast bags.
[
Piccard died on January 28, 1963 (his 79th birthday) in Minneapolis.
]
Piccard family
* Jules Piccard (professor of chemistry)
** Auguste Piccard
Auguste Antoine Piccard (28 January 1884 – 24 March 1962) was a Switzerland, Swiss physicist, inventor and explorer known for his record-breaking Gas balloon, hydrogen balloon flights, with which he studied the Earth's upper atmosphere. Picca ...
(physicist, aeronaut, balloonist, hydronaut)
*** Jacques Piccard
Jacques Piccard (28 July 19221 November 2008) was a Swiss oceanographer and engineer, known for having developed underwater submarines for studying ocean currents. In the Challenger Deep, he and Lt. Don Walsh of the United States Navy were the ...
(hydronaut)
**** Bertrand Piccard
Bertrand Piccard FRSGS (born 1 March 1958) is a Swiss explorer, psychiatrist and environmentalist. Along with Brian Jones, he was the first to complete a non-stop balloon flight around the globe, in a balloon named Breitling Orbiter 3. He was ...
(aeronaut, balloonist)
** Jean Felix Piccard (organic chemist, aeronaut, and balloonist)
** Jeannette Piccard
Jeannette Ridlon Piccard ( ; January 5, 1895 – May 17, 1981) was an American high-altitude balloon (aircraft), balloonist, and in later life an Episcopalianism, Episcopal priest. She held the women's altitude record for nearly three decades, an ...
(wife of Jean Felix) (aeronaut and balloonist)
*** Don Piccard
Donald Louis Piccard (January 13, 1926 – September 13, 2020) was a Swiss-born American balloon pioneer, promoter, innovator, designer, builder, and pilot.
Piccard was born in Lausanne, Switzerland to Jean Felix Piccard and Jeanette (Ridlon ...
(balloonist)
Legacy
In 1991, Piccard was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame
The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Sin ...
at the San Diego Air & Space Museum
San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
. Gene Roddenberry
Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Sr. (August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991) was an American television screenwriter, producer, and creator of ''Star Trek: The Original Series'', its sequel spin-off series ''Star Trek: The Animated Series,'' and ''Sta ...
named the ''Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' character Jean-Luc Picard
Jean-Luc Picard is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, most often seen as the captain of the Federation starship . Played by Patrick Stewart, Picard has appeared in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (''T ...
after either Jean or his twin Auguste, and it is implied that the character is a descendant of one of the brothers. The Swiss explorer and environmentalist Bertrand Piccard
Bertrand Piccard FRSGS (born 1 March 1958) is a Swiss explorer, psychiatrist and environmentalist. Along with Brian Jones, he was the first to complete a non-stop balloon flight around the globe, in a balloon named Breitling Orbiter 3. He was ...
claims that it was after his great-uncle Jean Piccard.
Notes and references
External links
Don Piccard - 50 Years of Ballooning Memories
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piccard, Jean
1884 births
1963 deaths
American aviators
20th-century American chemists
American balloonists
Scientists from Chicago
Scientists from Minneapolis
Swiss emigrants to the United States
University of Chicago faculty
Scientists from Basel-Stadt
University of Lausanne alumni
Swiss twins