Nott demonstrates an important advance in balloon design with the the first crossing of Australia from Perth to Broken Hill.

Nott designed and piloted a "Pumpkin" superpressuer balloon. This demonstrated a new balloon type of great significance to the history of ballooning. Click here for details under INNOVATIVE DESIGNS. NASA is currently developing Nott's new concept for high-altitude long-duration scientific flights. At far left Nott in flight over Australia and near left NASA's impression of their new balloon, the Ultra Long Duration Balloon, ULDB, showing the derivation from Nott's design.

 

The flight involved other significant innovations include a unique inflated hangar. Nott considered it important to fill and prepare the balloon in a hangar to allow calm and meticulous preparation. But no hangar tall enough was available on the West coast of Australia. So this novel design was conceived by Tim Woodbridge and built by Brian Smith, and is seen here at Pearce Air Force Base, Perth, Western Australia.

During prepration a storm passed: the flag shows the strong winds. "I had designed it to be strong enough to stand in a wind of 75 mph." says Nott. "The meteorological office on the Base recorded a gust of 54 mph so it was a nail-biting time for me but the hangar stood."

"When the storm had passed and everything was ready, the launch was magical," Nott recalls. "We had to wait till after sunset for the wind to drop. The hangar,only half visible in the darkness, fell open with a crash, revealing the brilliant white balloon floodlit inside."


The huge zipper opened and hangar fell open in a few seconds. Within minutes the balloon is ready. Note the blue hangar fabric on the ground.


Nott next morning flying over the Ocean, the Australian Bight.


Over the Australian Bight at 18,000 feet and 80 miles per hour!
   


Nott's eyeview looking directly up at the fully pressurized balloon.


Sunset over Australia.   Said Nott: "During the first day, we flew 500 miles over the great Australian Bight,dangerously cold, stormy and shark-infested. But as the day ended we crossed back to the safety of land at the eastern end of the Bight and enjoyed the sunset. Few experiences are more memorable than sunrise or sunset above the clouds seen from an open basket".

This special envelope was sanctioned by the Australian Post Office and carried in the pumpkin balloon.