How the Hot Air Balloon works

How is possible for the balloons to rise, to travel in the sky and then descend down?

The principle that regulates the flight of the balloon is very simple: the hot air has a lighter mass than the cold one, and, for this reason, it tends to rise upwards. On the contrary the cold air goes downwards.

Thanks to a “burner”, the engine of the balloon placed between the basket and the balloon, it can adjust the air temperature appropriately “trapped” inside the balloon. By warming it, it becomes less dense than the air we have outside and then tends to rise upwards and “float” in the sky, just like a boat floats on the sea.By decreasing the temperature inside the balloon, thanks to the use of the burner, it is possible to adjust the downward movement, which will allow the landing. You can only control the balloon vertical movements, i.e. towards up and down.

And how can you decide where to go if the pilot can only control the upward and downward motions?

In the air, depending on the altitude you decide to reach there are currents, that the pilot can know in advance, intercept them and then follow the direction. In any case the balloon flight is “passive” because even if we can choose the currents you are literally and gently dragged by them.

But why is the balloon so big?

The balloon is very large compared to the basket as it requires a certain amount of hot air in order to raise the weight of the basket and the people inside it.