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I'm guessing that if the balloon was often scraping ground, and they let gas out, it would be even worse. But the article could have clarified this, and at leas

by hyp0 12y ago

I'm guessing that if the balloon was often scraping ground, and they let gas out, it would be even worse. But the article could have clarified this, and at least spent a little more time on this pivotal moment of the narrative.

Johnythree 12y ago
Yes, Balloons control their height by dropping ballast and/or releasing gas. When they eventually run out of ballast, they can no longer control the balloon.