BALLOON SCIENCE FUN
Have you ever wondered how many helium balloons it would take to lift different objects Up into the air?
It’s a tricky question and an even trickier answer because there are so many variables to consider. For instance:
• How big are the balloons?
• How heavy is the object?
• How quickly to do you want the object to rise Up?
We have come Up with a general formula you can use to figure out how many balloons it would take to lift… well, just about anything!
• Helium has a lifting force of about 1 gram per liter.
• An average size party balloon is approximately 30cm (one foot) in diameter.
• It can hold approximately 14 liters.
• That’s 14 grams of lift power per balloon.
• Estimate and subtract the weight of the string and the latex balloon.
• Formula: 1 balloon = 10 grams of lift power.
How Many Balloons Would It Take To Lift:
Disney • Pixar’s Up Blu-ray™Combo Pack?
At approximately 227 grams (or 0.5 lbs) in weight, it requires approximately 22 balloons to send the movie Up, up and away!
A Blu-ray Disc™ Player?
Most models weigh just over 2 kg (4.5 lbs.) which requires 200 balloons to add a whole new meaning to Blu-ray™ “high definition.”
Your Neighbor’s Dog?
A happy Labrador Retriever dog weighs in at about 32 kg (70 lbs). It would take approximately 3200 balloons to lift this furry friend off the ground.
Fun Fact: The voice of Dug (the Dog) in the movie Up is actually the voice of Co-Director / Screenwriter, Bob Peterson.
A Bicycle?
The average bicycle weighs approximately 19 kilograms (or 42 lbs). You will need approximately 1,900 balloons
to turn a 2-wheeler into an air-bike.
Fun Fact: Before the Wright Brothers built their first flying airplane in 1903, they operated a small bicycle repair shop.
A Sumo Wrestler?
The average weight of a Sumo wrestler is approximately 148 kg (or 326 lbs). That means it would take about 148,000 balloons to send this guy Up.
Fun Fact: Sumo wrestling was established as a national sport in 1909.
A Small House?
This figure can vary in terms of quantity of balloons given the size and scale of the house. Let’s say the house in Disney/Pixar ’s movie Up weighed about 46,000 kg (that’s 101,413 lbs). That means it takes approximately 4,600,000 balloons to send Carl’s home Up and away!
Fun Fact: Nearly 70 animators worked on the movie Up during peak production
That’s so fun!!
Although I don’t know if I’d want a flying house >.<
What a fun fact-filled post!
I actually did wonder how many balloons it would take to lift his house. Or how many balloons it would take to actually lift up one of my kids! Now I know it would take way more balloons than I could afford!
Now my daughter wants to see how many balloons it will take to lift my car so Daddy can buy me a new one. LOL
Like your post with a bit of science twist. Good bit of educational info I can pass along too. Thanks.
I never thought to take an educational spin onto that movie. I will talk about this with my 3rd grade daughter. Perfect!
The movie was so deep, I was surprised when we saw it in the theater.
Was this on the special footage of the DVD? Cool facts! Although I shudder at sharing them with my girls. They love balloons and would want to get some to test some of the objects around the house. Like the cats!
I don’t even want to know how many balloons it would take to lift me, LOL! Fun facts.
It is always fun to hear interesting facts like this. I agree with Brittany I don’t want to know how many will lift me.