Hurricane Irma Closes Aerophile at Disney Springs: The Science Behind the Scenes
The famous balloon ride at Disney Springs is now closed until weather conditions improve.
Ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Irma, Aerophile (formerly Characters in Flight) has closed up shop until further notice. When conditions are perfect the attraction can lift 20+ guests to a maximum height of 400 feet in the air. For obvious reasons, the strictest safety precautions will always be taken.
ith the hurricane still days away, the Aerophile team has already taken the attraction out of service. In the photo below you can see a closer look at the netting that encompasses the balloon.
The massive weather net is secured to the landing dock with anchor points, with safety lines extending past the base and outward to the furthest corners of the dock. See how the balloon has been lowered to the passenger basket? You'd figure that all this is overkill, or they're just making sure the balloon doesn't fly away.. and I get it. To the simplest of thoughts, you're right. But there's more to it. Cue up the "The Science Guy" theme song, cause now we're talking about physics! I promise it'll be short & sweet, just like Bill.. except he's actually really tall; like, 6' 1" tall.
Here's where the science comes into play. There's a little thing called the center of gravity. It's how Objects find balance and it's why (if you've ridden Aerophile) the pilot instructs all the guests to spread around evenly in the basket before takeoff. The balloon and the basket are balanced in perfect harmony. Every attachment point between balloon and nest has been calculated precisely to achieve a harmonious level of weight distribution. When guests spread out around the nest of the basket, it once again aligns the center of gravity with the balloon allowing for a smooth takeoff.
If everyone hovered on one side of the basket, gravity would take hold and the lighter side would pitch upward while the heavier side would attempt to stay on the ground. Imagine it's a grocery store basket
When you're out shopping, the first item placed in a basket like this throws off the balance. Usually you'll place the next item on the opposite side to even things out and indirectly, that's you trying to find the center gravity for the grocery basket. It's also why the baskets have nets surrounding the nest (shown below). It's not only so you don't fall out on accident, it's also to prevent a mid-air capsizing. he likelihood of such an event happening is extremely slim, but safety first.
Thats the non-sciencey scientific explanations on the airborne physics and how that whole deal operates. Securing the balloon to the ground has virtually the same effective technical usage of physics that keep the balloon secured in the air, just reversed around a bit.
First they need to lower the center of gravity to keep it down - vs. when they expand the center of gravity to make it fly. The balloon is top-heavy; throw out the idea that it's a helium filled balloon because the area mass of the object is far greater than its base. #Science
To lower the center of gravity, they first need to make it short, then wide. This stabilizes the balloon over a greater distance of area
Shrink it down: They lower the balloon "into" the basket. This reduces the greater range of movement and makes the general mass of the object more secure and manageable.
Flattening it out: Deflation isn't the easiest option. To reinflate would be too costly, plus helium is a natural resource (no, it can't be man-made) and we're running low. According to Professor of Physics, Robert Richardson, our global supply is running low and he estimates we roughly have about 25-30 years worth of helium left at our current usage rate. BTW - he won the 1996 Nobel prize for his work on superfluidity in helium so he knows a thing or two about this subject.
With deflation being impractical, they extend tethers outward to the far ends of the dock. This helps to stabilize and essentially eliminate the movement of the balloon. By achieving this system of having dozens of tie down points it renders the balloon and basket imobile. When powerful winds pick up, the stress and tension on the lines are distributed equally and the secured object lives on to float another day. There's more equations I could dive into, like how they determine the "length of" and "force on a tether that's attached to an object" but you get the idea.
As for now, since you're all caught up on the geeky science factors that play out, it's safe to say you won't be seeing this balloon flying anytime before Wednesday, Sept 13th. Once the hurricane passes and it's safe, Aerophile will be soaring once more.
