A Rozière balloon (or simply Rozière) is a type of hybrid

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 ...

that has separate chambers for a non-heated

lifting gas A lifting gas or lighter-than-air gas is a gas that has a density lower than normal atmospheric gases and rises above them as a result. It is required for aerostats to create buoyancy, particularly in lighter-than-air aircraft, which include ballo ...

(such as

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 ...

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. ...

) as well as for a heated lifting gas (as used in a

hot air balloon A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries ...

or Montgolfière). The design was created by

Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier () was a French chemistry and physics teacher, and one of the first pioneers of aviation. He made the first manned free balloon flight with François Laurent d'Arlandes on 21 November 1783, in a Montgolfier bal ...

(1754–1785).Shectman, p. 26. A Rozière-type balloon has the advantage of partial control of

buoyancy Buoyancy (), or upthrust, is an upward force exerted by a fluid that opposes the weight of a partially or fully immersed object. In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus the p ...

with much less use of fuel than a typical hot air balloon. This reduction of fuel consumption has allowed Rozière balloons and their crew to achieve very long flight times, as much as several days or even weeks.

Early endeavours

The first Rozière was built for an attempt at crossing the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

on 15 June 1785. Contemporary accounts state that the balloon caught fire, suddenly deflated and crashed near Wimereux in the Pas-de-Calais, killing Rozier, who was riding the balloon.

Modern era

Today’s Rozière designs use non-flammable helium rather than hydrogen. Their primary application is for extremely long duration flights. The first successful Atlantic crossing was made 31 August to 2 September 1986, Newfoundland to the Netherlands, by Brink, Brink and Hageman in the balloon ''Dutch Viking''. During February 1992, the first east-to-west Atlantic crossing was achieved by Feliu and Green. Four Cameron-R77s made Atlantic crossings, west to east, during September 1992. One was co-piloted by

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 ...

. Australian adventurer Dick Smith and his co-pilot John Wallington made the first balloon voyage across Australia, in another Cameron-R77 Rozière, ''Australian Geographic Flyer'', on 18 June 1993, earning the 1995 Montgolfier Diploma.

Steve Fossett James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...

made the first successful Pacific crossing during February 1995. On 27 February 1999, while they were trying to circumnavigate the world by balloon, Colin Prescot and Andy Elson set a new endurance record after flying in a Rozière combined helium and hot air balloon (the ''Cable & Wireless'' balloon) for 233 hours and 55 minutes."Balloonists Soar Into History Books." ''Contra Costa Times.'' March 21, 1999. Then on 21 March of that year,

and

Brian Jones Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English multi-instrumentalist and singer best known as the founder, rhythm/lead guitarist, and original leader of the Rolling Stones. Initially a guitarist, he went on to prov ...

became the first to

circumnavigate Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical body (e.g. a planet or moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first recorded circumnavigation of the Earth was the Magel ...

the

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

, in a Rozière known as the ''

Breitling Orbiter 3 ''Breitling Orbiter'' was the name of three different Rozière balloons made by the Bristol based balloon manufacturer Cameron Balloons to circumnavigate the globe, named after the Swiss watchmakers Breitling. The third was successful in Marc ...

'', in a flight lasting 477 hours, 47 minutes. On 4 July 2002, after five previous attempts,

became the first to achieve a round the world solo flight also in a Rozière named the '' Spirit of Freedom''.Glenday, p. 179. On 23 July 2016,

Fyodor Konyukhov Fyodor Filippovich Konyukhov (russian: Фёдор Филиппович Конюхов; born 12 December 1951 in Chkalovo, Pryazovskyi Raion, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukrainian SSR) is a Russian survivalist, voyager, aerial and marine explorer, a ...

completed a round-the-world solo flight in a Rozière in just over 11 days, setting a new world record.

References

Bibliography

*Davis, Jeffrey R.; Johnson, Robert; Stepanek, Jan; and Fogarty, Jennifer A. ''Fundamentals of Aerospace Medicine.'' Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2008. *Federal Aviation Administration. United States Department of Transportation. ''Balloon Flying Handbook.'' FAA-H-8083-11A. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2007. *Glenday, Craig. ''Guinness World Records 2011.'' New York: Bantam Books, 23 11. *Shectman, Jonathan. ''Groundbreaking Scientific Experiments, Inventions, and Discoveries of the 18th Century.'' Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Roziere balloon Balloons (aeronautics)

Early endeavours

Modern era

See also

References

Bibliography