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The Physics of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloons
How do these giant balloons work? What makes them both easier and more complicated than a normal-size balloon?
If you consider a 75-kilogram human to have a density near that of water (1000 kg/m 3) this would give a body volume of just 0.075 m 3 and a buoyancy force of 0.882 Newtons (0.2 pounds). The easiest way to do this is to take a thin layer of a shell and fill it with a very light gas like helium (hydrogen and hot air also work). If you double the radius of your balloon, you increase this area by a factor of four, which gives four times the air force.
Or read this on Wired
