Introduction
Balloons carrying animals and humans date back to the late 1700s, and over the ensuing centuries, scientific balloons have had a huge impact in terms of taking animals and humans to near space. From studying the effects of cosmic radiation at high altitudes, to testing the life support systems and space suits intended for spacecraft, and evaluating the physiological effects of high altitude, exploration via balloons has played an integral part in studying the lower boundary of space. The unique opportunity of ballooning and taking humans to the edge of space has allowed scientists to perform a wide range of studies pertaining to neurological, physiological, and operational behaviors on the human body in these extreme conditions. Additionally, a wide array of ballooning experiments has given insight to novel ideas on operational risks, mechanical components, medical contingency plans, and flight test protocols. Starting in eighteenth-century France and continuing through...
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The author wishes to acknowledge assistance from Mr. Gregory Sutton in researching this entry as well as assistance from Ms. Catherine M. Moreno in editing the content.
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Clark, J.B. (2019). Overview of Balloon Flights and Their Biomedical Impact on Human Spaceflight. In: Young, L., Sutton, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Bioastronautics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_76-1
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Overview of Balloon Flights and Their Biomedical Impact on Human Spaceflight- Published:
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_76-1