The highest recorded gas filled balloon reached 173,000 ft (53 km), launched in 2002 from Japan! However, this was not a normal weather balloon, but a specially designed balloon with a material which is 1/6 the thickness of a plastic grocery bag. The highest recorded weather balloon flight of one of StratoStar's customers is 125,200 ft (38 km) launched by DePauw University launch on August 11, 2011 from Illinois. Average weather balloon flights reach 60,000 to 105,000 ft.
Another Explanation
The balloon will continue to rise until the weight of the surrounding air is equal to the weight of the helium (and balloon). But air becomes thinner (less dense) the higher you go, and therefore there is a theoretical maximum height that a helium balloon can reach. This occurs at about 20 miles above the Earth (that's just over 110,000 feet up, or three times the altitude at which most planes cruise). Since 'outer space' is judged to be about 600 miles above the Earth, the balloon cannot carry you into space.
The record for a human helium-driven ascent above the Earth is currently 113,000 feet. Last year 2 Englishmen attempted to break the record with a colossal 100-metre diameter balloon designed to reach an altitude of 120,000 feet. Unfortunately a set-back at launch prevented it ever leaving the ground. We covered this story on the radio when they announced their intentions the year before launch
අඩි 110 000 ක්.. ප්ලේන් එකක් යන උස වගේ තුන් ගුණයක්... සෑහෙන උසක යනවනෙ බොලව්..
