Can helium balloons make it into space?

A helium-filled balloon can float very high up into the atmosphere, however, it cannot float up into outer space. The balloon can only rise up until the atmosphere surrounding it has the same weight as the helium in the balloon. This happens at about a height of 20 miles (32 kilometers) above Earth’s surface.

What would happen if you took a helium-filled balloon to the moon and released it?

The gravity would act on the balloon uninterfered with by the buoyancy of the heavier than helium atmosphere of Earth. It would sink. Since the moon has no atmosphere for the inflated balloon to displace, the helium-filled balloon simply will fall to the surface of the moon, attracted by the moon’s gravity.

Will a balloon fly on Mars?

In order to fly balloons at Mars, the balloons must be made of very lightweight material. One simple type is a helium balloon that carries a rope-like snake. During the day, the balloon would be heated by the sun and rise to some altitude above the Martian surface.

What happens if you burst a balloon in space?

The air molecules in this space balloon would expand at an extremely rapid rate, quickly pushing the rubber walls past their elasticity limits, causing the balloon to explode.

Could a space elevator cable be made out of nanotubes?

The steel used in tall buildings wouldn’t work for a space elevator cable. You’d need a higher mass of steel than all the mass in the universe, Landgraf noted in a 2013 TEDx talk. Instead, physicists are looking to carbon nanotubes.

Could you pass the International Space Station in a space elevator?

You’d pass the International Space Station. “And by the time you get to geosynchronous [orbit], you can put your hand up and cover the Earth,” Edwards says. But you wouldn’t have to stop there. Because of how the end of the elevator is being flung around, you could use it to slingshot yourself to another planet.

What would you see on a space elevator lift?

Then you’d see the anchor station, where the ribbon is tied to Earth, dropping away. You might start slow, but the elevator could reach speeds of between 160 to 320 kilometers per hour (100 to 200 miles per hour). The view would change from watching clouds and lightning over the Earth’s surface to seeing the curve of the Earth.

Could a giant cable that reaches into orbit be built?

A giant tower would probably sink into the planet. A cable that reaches into orbit could work — but only if researchers can find a strong enough material to build it. Astronaut Roy McBride peers out over the Earth at the start of the new sci-fi flick Ad Astra. It’s not an unusual view for him.