School Name: Sherwood Heights School
Team Size: 1 or 2
Grade Category: 4-6
ProjectType: Experimental
Subject Area: Physics/Astronomy
Language: English
Team Captain First Name: Lewis
Team Captain Last Name: Kent
Project Title: Lighter Than Air
Project Abstract: My project was on hot air balloons. The purpose of my project was to determine how temperature affects hot air balloons. My hypothesis was that the balloon with hot air will go higher than the one with cold air.
Meteorologists use hot air balloons to carry their instruments
up into the atmosphere. These instruments measure air pressure,
humidity, and temperature and send the measurements back to to the
ground by radio transmitter. By tracking the balloons movements,
Meteorologists can also measure wind direction.
The Invention of the Hot Air Balloon
About 200 years ago, the Montigolfier brothers
who lived in France noticed that smoke and
steam move upward. They thought that if they
could trap some hot air in a large balloon, it
should be able to fly.
In September 1783 the brothers made a huge
balloon out of very light material and carefully
started a fire under it. No one had ever
flown before,so the first passengers on a hot
air balloon were a sheep, goat, anda chicken.
The first flight was success except for the chicken
stepped on the goat!
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