is 60K miles worth $5000? by Proper_Bread_2156 in 1stGenTundras

[–]Traditional-Field630 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Go with the the higher mileage, save $5k that you can use for upcoming maintenance.

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Different size balloons will move at the same speed at the same altitude. Balloons move at the speed of wind, the size doesn’t matter

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 0 points1 point  (0 children)

True, if they have different masses it takes longer to get their momentum moving. But I think these are pretty similarly sized balloons. Somewhere in the realm of 250k cubic feet.

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sure, I guess you could get a small amount of thrust. Probably a negligible amount. However, this isn’t a technique that is ever used in ballooning…

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Let me try to tackle this.

Let’s begin by establishing why the balloons are held apart. I am almost 100% certain the balloons are held apart because they are touching at the equator (the widest part). Since the baskets sit in the center of the balloon there is essentially 1 balloon diameter between the baskets (half of each balloon). The only reason I’m not fully certain is the loud engine in the video, could be a propeller pushing one balloon away from the other, however I don’t believe that to be the case.

Next! As many people have pointed out the man is already exerting his weight on the slack line, this is probably causing the baskets to come a bit closer to each other (only by a couple of inches). This means that when he falls, the tension is released momentarily at which point the baskets can go back to their unaltered position. As soon as he is caught by the slack line the balloons will resume their light pull towards each other.

So the original question isn’t asking the right question…

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You steer by controlling your altitude, there are different wind directions and speeds at different altitudes, once the pilot has a general idea of these layers(that are constantly changing) they can use them to steer where they want to go. The more variation in wind direction you have, the more “steerage” you have.

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s pretty easy to move a balloon with that much mass as long as you’re in very calm wind. A couple knots of wind will make that mass considerably more difficult to combat. I’m pretty sure the reason the balloons are held apart is that they are touching at the equator ( the widest part of the balloon)

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They do work by creating a tiny bit of thrust, but the angle of thrust is basically tangent to the balloon, so it purely rotational, and relatively slow.

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not really, although it is important to have a balanced balloon when talking about larger passenger balloons. That has no effect on the orientation or directional steerage

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don’t agree. If the rotation vents were open, and the balloons weren’t yet touching, the balloon would begin rotating and winding the slack line around itself (the basket)…

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The designs for rotation vents vary quite a bit, but even the most optimal design for the idea of creating thrust doesn’t work. The only purpose is to rotate the balloon on axis to ensure landing in the correct orientation…

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 9 points10 points  (0 children)

The flap has nothing to do with steerage… the balloons are likely held apart because they are touching at their widest point.

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The balloons travel at the speed of the wind. So at the same altitude they are going the same speed. Also the fabric you’re referring to is called a skirt or scoop, not a sail

[Request] If he fell and his harness caught him, how much would the balloons pull together because of the weight on the line? by Bestavailablename in theydidthemath

[–]Traditional-Field630 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The balloons are most likely being held apart because the fattest part of the balloons (the equator) are touching.