From Laundry to Flying Machines

     The Montgolfier Brothers, Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne, grew up in a home where innovative thinking was encouraged. However, the brothers couldn’t have been more different. Jacques excelled at the practical side of things; eventually, his parents sent him to Paris to learn architecture. Joseph, however, was a dreamer and contemplated how to build flying machines.

     Not all inspiration results from a falling apple. In Joseph’s case, he observed how laundry that was filled with hot air for drying would float up into the air. Armed with his observation that hot air could carry objects aloft, he began experimenting with building a flying machine that could make use of this fact.

     Northwest of the City of Marseille in the town of Avignon, Joseph began his experiments with hot air lift in November 1782. One of his flights of fancy for a practical use of the hot air balloon came in the form of the military problem of the day—assaulting the impregnable fortress of Gibraltar. Joseph imagined a hot air craft capable of lifting soldiers up and over the walls. This and other thought experiments ultimately resulted in the creation of the globe aérostatique—the Montgolfier-style hot air balloon.

     The brother’s first attempt at hot air flight didn’t go as planned. The first test flight, launched on December 14, 1782, used wool and hay as fuel for the fire to create the needed hot air. Unfortunately, the lifting force created was greater than Joseph and Jacques could control, and they lost control of the craft. But with perseverance and continued testing, the brothers went on to achieve manned flight success with Jacques making the first tethered human flight in a hot air balloon on June 4, 1783.

     Was it Joseph’s keen observations that resulted in the creation of the hot air balloon? Perhaps. Was it Jacques’ courage to board the basket, despite previous setbacks, that resulted in man’s first powered ascent into the sky? Perhaps. But neither could have achieved flight without growing up in a home supportive of innovation. What innovation happens at your home?

     Fly safe!