Men who climbed over 10 thousand meters in a balloon for the first time in human history in the 19th century

In any world, there is a pioneer who has taken the first step in an unknown world that has never been experienced by human beings, and its courageous behavior has expanded the possibilities of mankind. It was the two Britons of the 19th century that reached the extremely high altitude of 10,000 meters above the ground, and the exploitation of human beings to the "sky" leading to the universe by the actions of these two people's life is progressing greatly.

BBC - Future - The Victorians who flew as high as jumbo jets
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160419-the-victorians-who-flew-as-high-as-jets

British meteorologist James Glacier worked for the Greenwich Observatory and worked in the meteorological department inspired interest in how the sky ahead is. From the end of the 18th century, techniques for ballooning by balloons began to be developed, and Glacier plans to explore the sky using a balloon, persuading the British Science Promotion Association, I gained the cost.

For exploration flight to the unknown sky, Glacier organized a plan with a balloon expert, Henry Coxwell, and made a balloon for a long time. In parallel with making a balloon, Glacier, who acquired knowledge about climate and other weather conditions, will finish the first flight by balloon on July 17, 1862.


Glacier and Coxwell balloons succeeded in passing through the clouds 12 minutes after takeoff. About the flight that succeeded in the virgin flight Glacier writes about "the supreme beauty that the cloud produces" and the prism which emerged around the shadow of the balloon projected in the cloud.

Glacier, who successfully flew several flights from the first flight, decided to fly challenge on September 5, 1862 aiming at an altitude that no one has ever reached. In this flight, Glacier brings "six pigeons" along with a compass, a thermometer, a bottle of brandy in the balloon basket. This was to judge whether there is danger from the change of the pigeon who knows the world of the unknown sky better than a human being.

When the balloon reached an altitude 3 miles (about 4,800 meters), one of the six pigeons died. Glacier threw the dead pige out of the basket, and the dove fell downward like a stone downwards. And the pigeons that became "stone", two in the sky above 4 miles (about 6400 meters), the third in 4.5 miles (about 7200 meters), were thrown out one after another.


When the altitude exceeds 5 miles (about 8000 meters), the temperature drops to minus 20 degrees, and Glacier and Coxwell begin noticing the difficulty of planning. It seems that it was difficult to read the memory of the mercury column of the wet bulb thermometer already.

And soon, Glacier feels the accident that happened to his body. When I tried to raise the arm which was placed on the table, I noticed that my arm could not lift without reacting. Glacier who tried to call Coxwell of partner said that the words did not go well. This is due to a change in atmospheric pressure accompanying a sudden rise, the gas melted in the blood evaporates to become a bubble and embolize the blood vessel "Decompression diseaseAlthough it is the symptom, it is not hard to imagine that Glacier at that time was unable to have known such a disorder and panic.

Unfortunately, when Coxwell decided to lower the altitude in a harsh environment, it was unfortunate that the rope was tangled in the valve line to release the balloon gas. In this situation the danger is close to life, Coxwell never caught himself out of the basket and unraveled the tangled ropes. Just as Coxwell appears in a death action, Glacier says he was losing consciousness under decompression as much as possible.


Although Coxwell himself also realized that moving the limbs due to decompression sickness was inevitable, it was successful to release the gas by biting in the valve line at the preparedness of death and shaking his head. The balloon began to descend slowly. In addition, it is speculated that the two balloons had passed through 10,000 meters above the sky and had entered the stratosphere.

Glacier, who regained consciousness when the altitude fell back, told Coxwell that "the sensation is lost," he took out the notebook and pencil again for recording and resumed the observation of the situation. After all, only the Glacier and Coxwell and one pigeon lived until the balloon landed. The pigeon that seemed to have been hurt in the heart seemed to have not descended from the hand of Glacier for 15 minutes after landing.

Glacier, who reported to the British Science Promotion Association "It survived intact," requested the further production of 21 balloons for weather observation, followed by a mechanism by which rain clouds gathered to cause rain and a change in altitude We have succeeded in obtaining knowledge such as wind direction and speed change. Glacier who wrote that "When you are in the sky isolated from land and seems to have become a citizen of the sky," the gray shear who got praised its achievement, later the crater of the moon is named "Glacier".