The National Balloon Museum is a non-profit museum in Indianola, Iowa. It was founded in 1975 in short term locations, later gaining a permanent location in 1988. [1] All of the museum's exhibits are about hot air ballooning and gas ballooning. [2] The museum is in the shape of a hot air balloon's gondola. [2] There are only two balloon museums within the United States, the other one being the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum. [3]
The National Hot Air Balloon Championship preliminaries were held in Indianola in 1970. Due to the success of the competition, the championships started happening every year which led to exhibits being created yearly for the competition. However, the exhibits could only be put up temporarily. The short term exhibits created a need for a museum where they can be stored year round. [1] The exhibits are from the Balloon Federation of America, covering over 200 years of history. [2] Included in the museum's collection is the first hot air balloon that crossed the English Channel. [3] Located within the museum is the U.S. Ballooning Hall of Fame, a children's area and a library. [4] The children's area has photo shoots and books about ballooning. [5]
All of the museum's workers are volunteers. 24,000 people visit the museum each year, with the visitors coming from twenty countries. [6] The museum has hosted a nine day long festival, titled the National Balloon Classic, yearly in late July since 1989. [5] A large donation was received to continue the museum's operation in 2015. The donation was left in a will and was in a large unspecified amount. [3]
The U.S. Ballooning Hall of Fame "recognizes persons who have contributed in significant ways to the sport and or development of Ballooning."
The following persons have been inducted into the Hall of Fame: [7]
Indianola is a city in Warren County, Iowa, United States, located 14 miles (23 km) south of downtown Des Moines. The population was 15,833 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Warren County. Indianola is home to the National Balloon Classic, a nine-day hot air balloon festival held annually in the summer, the Des Moines Metro Opera, a world renowned major American Summer Opera Festival, and Simpson College.
In aeronautics, a balloon is an unpowered aerostat, which remains aloft or floats due to its buoyancy. A balloon may be free, moving with the wind, or tethered to a fixed point. It is distinct from an airship, which is a powered aerostat that can propel itself through the air in a controlled manner.
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a yearly hot air balloon festival that takes place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during early October. The Balloon Fiesta is a nine-day event occurring in the first full week of October, and has over 500 hot air balloons each year far from its beginnings of merely 13 balloons in 1972. The event is the largest balloon festival in the world, followed by the Grand Est Mondial Air in France, and the León International Balloon Festival in Mexico.
Benjamin L. "Ben" Abruzzo was an American balloonist and businessman who helped make Albuquerque, New Mexico, into an international ballooning center. He was part of the balloon crews that made the first Atlantic Ocean crossing by balloon in the Double Eagle II and the first Pacific Ocean crossing by balloon in the Double Eagle V.
A gas balloon is a balloon that rises and floats in the air because it is filled with a gas lighter than air. When not in flight, it is tethered to prevent it from flying away and is sealed at the bottom to prevent the escape of gas. A gas balloon may also be called a Charlière for its inventor, the Frenchman Jacques Charles. Today, familiar gas balloons include large blimps and small latex party balloons. For nearly 200 years, well into the 20th century, manned balloon flight utilized gas balloons before hot-air balloons became dominant. Without power, heat or fuel, untethered flights of gas balloons depended on the skill of the pilot. Gas balloons have greater lift for a given volume, so they do not need to be so large, and they can stay up for much longer than hot air balloons.
The National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum and hall of fame for amateur wrestling, headquartered in Stillwater, Oklahoma. In 2010, it began operating the Dan Gable Museum in Waterloo, Iowa.
Double Eagle II, piloted by Ben Abruzzo, Maxie Anderson and Larry Newman, became the first balloon to cross the Atlantic Ocean when it landed 17 August 1978 in Miserey near Paris, 137 hours 6 minutes after leaving Presque Isle, Maine.
Paul Edward Yost was the American inventor of the modern hot air balloon and is referred to as the "Father of the Modern Day Hot-Air Balloon." He worked for a high-altitude research division of General Mills in the early 1950s until he left to establish Raven Industries in 1956, along with several colleagues from General Mills.
Donald Louis Piccard was a Swiss-born American balloon pioneer, promoter, innovator, designer, builder, and pilot.
The Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum is a museum dedicated to the worldwide history, science, and art of all types of ballooning and lighter-than-air flight. It is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, and is situated just outside the grounds used for the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, the world's largest yearly balloon fiesta, and is named for Ben Abruzzo and Maxie Anderson, two Albuquerque natives who established several ballooning firsts, such as crossing the Atlantic Ocean and continents.
The University of Iowa Athletics Hall of Fame is a sports history museum located in the Roy G. Karro Building in Iowa City, Iowa, U.S. The museum pays tribute to the most legendary and influential Iowa Hawkeye sports heroes. Opened in October 2002, the building is located at the northwest corner of Melrose Avenue and Mormon Trek Boulevard. As of 2002, it was directed by Dale Arens.
Maxie Anderson was an American hot air balloonist and Congressional Gold Medal recipient He was part of the balloon crews that made the first Atlantic ocean crossing by balloon in the Double Eagle II and the first Pacific ocean crossing by balloon in the Double Eagle V.
Lazerfest was a music festival, created by the Lazer 103.3 radio station in Des Moines, Iowa. The festival featured rock artists such as Five Finger Death Punch, Halestorm, Falling In Reverse, Young Guns, Devour The Day, and We Are Harlot. The 2015 festival was held Friday, May 8 and Sunday, May 10, 2015, at the 7 Flags Event Center in Clive, Iowa. The festival was discontinued after that.
FireFly Balloons is an American hot air balloon manufacturer that started as The Balloon Works (TBW) in 1972 in Statesville, NC. The company is one of the oldest hot air balloon manufacturers in the United States, behind Raven Industries, SEMCO and Piccard Balloons. The origins of the company's designs can be traced to the work of Tracy Barnes in the late 1960s.
David N. Levin was an American balloonist. He is the only balloonist to have completed the "triple crown" by winning the World Gas Balloon Championship, the World Hot Air Ballooning Championships and the Gordon Bennett Cup. In 1992, Levin also became the first balloonist to win ballooning's four major events, having won the U.S. National Hot Air Balloon Championship along with the "triple crown".
The National Balloon Classic is an annual hot air balloon festival held at the Memorial Balloon Field in Indianola, Iowa. The classic is a nine-day event with nearly 100 hot air balloons.
Eleanor Vadala was an American chemist, materials engineer and balloonist. She became director of research and development at the Naval Air Development Center in Pennsylvania, where she helped to develop light synthetic materials for use in aircraft. One of her jobs was the testing of fabric in existing balloons to ensure they could be used safely.
The Balloon Federation of America (BFA) is a 501c3 non-profit group for the advancement of lighter-than-air aviation which includes hot air and gas balloons. Founded in 1960, located in Indianola, Iowa. The BFA partners with the National Balloon Museum to induct outstanding individuals into the United States Ballooning Hall of Fame. The Federation presents multiple awards including the Ed Yost Master Pilot Award and the National Crew Person Award. The BFA facilitates balloon events by providing advice and guidance on FAA compliance.
Spirit of Freedom balloon was a Rozière balloon designed and built by Donald Cameron and Tim Cole. In 2002 solo pilot Steve Fossett flew the Spirit of Freedom to become the first successful around-the-world nonstop solo flight in any kind of aircraft. On June 19, 2002, the 10-story-high balloon Spirit of Freedom lifted off from Northam, Western Australia, and landed in Queensland, Australia, on July 3, 2002. The solo flight circumnavigation lasted 13 days, 8 hours, 33 minutes and covered 20,626.48 statute miles (33,195.10 km). During this flight, the balloon reached speeds of up to 322 kilometers per hour, and flew as high as 10,580 meters.
Brooke Boden is an American politician. She has served as a member of the Iowa House of Representatives from District 21 since 2021 and as a Republican.
41°22′35″N93°33′35″W / 41.3763°N 93.5596°W
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