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Man Trying To Fly Across the Atlantic On Helium Balloons

Posted by samzenpus on from the what-could-possibly-go-wrong dept.

coondoggie writes "f you've ever wondered if you could fly just by holding onto a bunch of helium balloons over your head, well then you might understand where Accenture IT Technical Projects Manager Jonathan Trappe is coming from. Trappe today set out today from Caribou, Maine to cross 2,500 miles of Atlantic Ocean using 370 helium balloons slung under a small gondola. According to a DailyMail.com story, Trappe is relying on state-of-the-art weather data from the meteorologist who advised Felix Baumgartner on his record-breaking skydive from the stratosphere last year. The latest weather reports before the launch suggested winds would take Trappe to western Europe, though the exact destination would be hard to predict." Update: 09/13 14:08 GMT by S : The attempt is already over and unsuccessful. Trappe landed safely in Newfoundland, saying he was having trouble controlling the balloons.

15 of 92 comments (clear)

  1. On helium balloons? by chrism238 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm sceptical; I think you could do it on LSD, but helium would just give you that floating feeling.

  2. Slung UNDER? by macraig · · Score: 4, Funny

    Wait, the balloons are slung UNDER the gondola? Is this story from another multiverse where the rules ain't the same.

    In any case, with 370 dangling sacks that's a really well slung dude.

  3. You can follow his trip on Facebook by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I can't though, because like any responsible human being, I block Facebook at the DNS level. FFS people, if you make Facebook the new web, I give up all faith I had left in humanity.

  4. waste of helium. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    really.

    1. Re:waste of helium. by rubycodez · · Score: 2

      sure it escapes but there is not a net loss, there is gain. 50 grams of helium leave while 67 grams are added to the atmosphere every second ,the concentration is slowly going up. but even with no replenishment the 3.7 billion tons of helium in the atmosphere would take a very long time to drop to 10% of its current value, tens of millions of years (rate would drop as concentration lowers)

      As far as extraction, just pointing out the helium is not going away so as last resort could be reclaimed though hugely expensive energy-wise.

  5. There's an award for that by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    I hope he does better than this guy.

    1. Re:There's an award for that by daniel.garcia.romero · · Score: 2

      Here we go again! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUhY2kzlAFQ

  6. Yeah, nice move Accenture... by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 3, Insightful

    So this guys is wasting one of humankind's most precious resource on a useless stunt to promote his company. That's real slick, that.

    Note to self: never do business with Accenture.

    --
    "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    1. Re:Yeah, nice move Accenture... by Goaway · · Score: 3, Interesting

      If you believe a word the Daily Mail says, you're a fool.

      http://www.theguardian.com/science/shortcuts/2012/dec/11/should-we-ban-helium-balloons

  7. Re:Man Trying to Get Arrested by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    It's a licensed aircraft.

    N878UP

    See, it is certified airworthy;

    http://www.clusterballoon.com/UP/assets/UP_N878UP_AirworthinessCertificate.html

    http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/N878UP.html

  8. Obligatory xkcd by paavo512 · · Score: 2

    Obligatory xkcd (from three days ago!!!): http://what-if.xkcd.com/62/

  9. Re:I work in consulting... by Xiaran · · Score: 2

    Hey anything that results in the injury or death of an Accenture is OK by me.

  10. Track him at flightradar24.com by Muad'Dave · · Score: 2

    Since it's a registered aircraft with a transponder, you can track it HERE - just search for N878UP.

    --
    Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
  11. Well, that didn't work out well... by rootrot · · Score: 3, Informative

    http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Man-using-cluster-balloons-lands-in-Newfoundland-4811559.php

  12. Re:Man Trying to Get Arrested by Muad'Dave · · Score: 2

    As such, you can track it at http://www.flightradar24.com/ - just search for it.

    --
    Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.