1 00:00:01,040 --> 00:00:04,520 Speaker 1: Welcome to stuff you should know front House stuff Works 2 00:00:04,519 --> 00:00:13,319 Speaker 1: dot Com. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark, 3 00:00:13,360 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: There's Charles W. Chuck Bryant, and Jerry's with us, so 4 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:18,520 Speaker 1: that makes this stuff you should know. How you doing, 5 00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:21,400 Speaker 1: I'm good man, this is I'm excited about this. Oh 6 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: are you sure? Blimps? Yeah, because they have like eight names, blimp, dirigible, zeppelin, yeah, 7 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:35,960 Speaker 1: airship yeah. Uh well technically l t A I'm counting 8 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:39,639 Speaker 1: that lighter than airship, yeah, which I think is ultimately 9 00:00:39,720 --> 00:00:43,720 Speaker 1: lighter than airship. L t A is the umbrella term 10 00:00:43,840 --> 00:00:46,880 Speaker 1: for all of those things which are slightly different. Yeah. 11 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,000 Speaker 1: I think an l t A and an airship is 12 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:52,159 Speaker 1: all of them. The dirigible is all of them, Zeppelin 13 00:00:52,240 --> 00:00:54,760 Speaker 1: is rigid, and a blimp is non rigid. Nice and 14 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:58,000 Speaker 1: mostly we just said blimps. These days, not a lot 15 00:00:58,040 --> 00:01:00,920 Speaker 1: of rigid airships, aren't there? But would they would they 16 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:04,319 Speaker 1: constitute Yeah? No, but there's they can be semi rigid 17 00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: or non rigid, right, yeah, and I think the future 18 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:09,240 Speaker 1: we'll talk about that obviously the end. But I think 19 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:14,800 Speaker 1: those are some of those are more the semi rigid style, right, Yeah, 20 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:17,440 Speaker 1: but they're made up some really lightweight but very strong 21 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:23,399 Speaker 1: composite materials. Yeah. Boom so Chuck. Let's talk about the 22 00:01:23,440 --> 00:01:25,760 Speaker 1: history of blimps because I think when anybody thinks of 23 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:30,440 Speaker 1: blimps they think Handenburg. They think they think the Handenburg 24 00:01:30,880 --> 00:01:36,760 Speaker 1: and then maybe concurrently or right after the Good Year blimp. Yeah, 25 00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:40,840 Speaker 1: those are the two that really laid it on the 26 00:01:40,880 --> 00:01:45,560 Speaker 1: line for blimp them. Uh. Yeah, you know what you 27 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: want to talk about the early history, I guess, and 28 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:50,160 Speaker 1: then get to the tragedy. Yeah, because there wasn't that 29 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:53,440 Speaker 1: much time in between the two to tell you the truth. Yeah, 30 00:01:53,480 --> 00:01:55,560 Speaker 1: I mean that all started, of course with hot air 31 00:01:55,600 --> 00:01:59,960 Speaker 1: balloons because uh, they're not so different. In a cup 32 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:06,520 Speaker 1: of frenchees. Brothers Jacques Etienne and Joseph Michelle. They said 33 00:02:06,520 --> 00:02:08,120 Speaker 1: they were brothers, but they have different Last night, I 34 00:02:08,120 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: think Jacques Etienne is his first and middle name. Okay, 35 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:16,639 Speaker 1: that makes sense. They all had three names, uh, Mom, Golfier. 36 00:02:17,600 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: They invented the hot air balloon, uh, an unmanned hot 37 00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:24,839 Speaker 1: air balloon in three and then later that same year 38 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:29,240 Speaker 1: a French physicist last name de Rosier had the first 39 00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:32,760 Speaker 1: manned balloon flight and they were just floating around because 40 00:02:32,800 --> 00:02:35,800 Speaker 1: that's what our balloons do. You can go up and 41 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:37,680 Speaker 1: then if you're really good, you can come back down. 42 00:02:38,120 --> 00:02:41,200 Speaker 1: But left and right that's up to mother nature right, 43 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:44,119 Speaker 1: which is a little scary, although I think these days 44 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:45,799 Speaker 1: can they steer them at all. We have a great 45 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:48,079 Speaker 1: article on this on hot air balloon. No, you're you're 46 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:53,040 Speaker 1: subject to the winds to the the um was the 47 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: god of wind that you know he comes out of 48 00:02:56,520 --> 00:03:00,200 Speaker 1: the cloud and blows wind. Yeah that guy. Yeah, you're 49 00:03:00,240 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 1: you're subject to his whim. So if if you're headed 50 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: towards something, it's go over it or hit it. Yes, 51 00:03:06,919 --> 00:03:09,760 Speaker 1: And you remember there's that terrible bloom hot air balloon 52 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: accident and I think Virginia last year earlier this year 53 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: at Yeah, like they hit a power line I think, 54 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:17,560 Speaker 1: and then the basket caught fire and like they had 55 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:20,600 Speaker 1: to jump. It was really bad. Um, But yeah, you 56 00:03:20,639 --> 00:03:23,240 Speaker 1: can go up and over and I imagine it it's 57 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:25,799 Speaker 1: like a power line, yeah, or a tunnel if you're 58 00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:30,360 Speaker 1: really good, or you're in a cartoon like the laugh Olympics, 59 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: that's something they do in there totally. But the I 60 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:37,280 Speaker 1: think if you're really good, you could probably know where 61 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:40,800 Speaker 1: to steer into the wind to maybe use the wind. 62 00:03:41,280 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 1: But no. With the blimp, the big distinction is, aside 63 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: from its distinctive shape, is that you can maneuver like 64 00:03:48,800 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 1: a pro That's right. And that's what Henry uh Jaffar 65 00:03:53,120 --> 00:03:55,839 Speaker 1: did in eighteen fifty two when he finally someone said 66 00:03:55,920 --> 00:03:58,960 Speaker 1: we should steer these things. He built the first powered 67 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: airship and it was cigar fielled like the classic shape 68 00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:05,120 Speaker 1: that we know and love now, had a propeller like 69 00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: they have now, and a little engine although it was 70 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 1: a steam engine which they don't use now. Three horsepower 71 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: steam engine. Yeah, they're not huge engines. Still didn't take 72 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:18,160 Speaker 1: a lot apparently, No, it really doesn't. Um And those 73 00:04:18,240 --> 00:04:22,000 Speaker 1: were rigid airships. Uh, it's a it's a metal framework. 74 00:04:22,560 --> 00:04:25,760 Speaker 1: And in nineteen hundred count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. That name 75 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:29,599 Speaker 1: sounds familiar, Zeppelin of Germany. Uh, and that's where they 76 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:32,280 Speaker 1: got the name, of course. Because but I never understood 77 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 1: the Led the lead Well it was I think someone 78 00:04:35,720 --> 00:04:38,040 Speaker 1: said as a joke, you guys are gonna go over 79 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:40,239 Speaker 1: like a led Zeppelin, or they did when they played 80 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:42,200 Speaker 1: on the BBC. Is that it? But why take the 81 00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:44,920 Speaker 1: A out Because the same reason you take the A 82 00:04:45,000 --> 00:04:48,040 Speaker 1: out of def Leppard. I've never understood that either in 83 00:04:48,080 --> 00:04:50,120 Speaker 1: the same wings you put it um out over Motley Crue. 84 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:54,600 Speaker 1: This makes you cool, you know, different, different. You gotta 85 00:04:54,640 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 1: mispel something in your band. I think I was just 86 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,880 Speaker 1: looking too deeply into it. It's the problem. Yeah. L 87 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:03,279 Speaker 1: E A d. Zeppelin would be weird. Yeah, but I 88 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: think like our paradigm would have adjusted. We would think 89 00:05:06,440 --> 00:05:08,800 Speaker 1: L E. D. Zeppelin would be weird if we were 90 00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:11,080 Speaker 1: used to led Zeppelin with an A, or if the 91 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:14,440 Speaker 1: Beatles was spelled B E T L E S. Yeah, 92 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:19,400 Speaker 1: instead of their penny name very penny. All right, boy, 93 00:05:19,400 --> 00:05:21,880 Speaker 1: we get sidetracks so easy with music stuff. Not really 94 00:05:21,920 --> 00:05:25,040 Speaker 1: Zeppelin was I think people saw that coming before their 95 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,800 Speaker 1: press play. Uh So that was the rigid airship, the 96 00:05:28,839 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 1: first one, and those have a metal framework, and it 97 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:36,120 Speaker 1: had tail fins and rudders, had combustion engines and could 98 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:39,360 Speaker 1: cruise at about feet with up to five people. Yes, 99 00:05:39,480 --> 00:05:42,320 Speaker 1: not bad. You could bring the whole family as long 100 00:05:42,360 --> 00:05:45,520 Speaker 1: as you encounter, as long as you total no more 101 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: than five, as long as you paid off the captain. 102 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:49,880 Speaker 1: Well then you just have to be a family of four. 103 00:05:50,080 --> 00:05:53,800 Speaker 1: That's right, because the captain's gotta sit somewhere, right, they 104 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:59,400 Speaker 1: got their little captain's chair. So everything was going quite swimmingly. Actually, Um, 105 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:03,400 Speaker 1: around the turn of the twentieth century, there there was. 106 00:06:03,560 --> 00:06:06,720 Speaker 1: It was just widely assumed that we would have a 107 00:06:06,760 --> 00:06:10,640 Speaker 1: future where blimps that blinds were just a regular feature 108 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:13,760 Speaker 1: of the sky. Well they were up until the Hinderberg 109 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:17,359 Speaker 1: went down. There were more than two thousand flights carried um, 110 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:20,600 Speaker 1: tens of thousands of passengers over a million miles. Like 111 00:06:20,640 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: that was air travel, we should say, ultra wealthy passengers 112 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:28,479 Speaker 1: at the time. Um. The Hinderberg in particular was it 113 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:31,800 Speaker 1: was high class. It was the pride of Nazi Germany. Yeah, 114 00:06:32,320 --> 00:06:34,080 Speaker 1: And it was on its maiden voyage, wasn't it. It 115 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:36,320 Speaker 1: was almost called the Hitler by the way, was it really? Yeah? 116 00:06:36,400 --> 00:06:37,880 Speaker 1: But Hitler was like, I don't want my name on 117 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:42,000 Speaker 1: that thing. Really yet, not that he like foretold the future, 118 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:44,839 Speaker 1: He just didn't. I don't know. He just didn't want 119 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:49,280 Speaker 1: to him named after an airship. He didn't believe Freud's 120 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:52,880 Speaker 1: idea that sometimes the cigars just a cigar, yeah, or 121 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:55,760 Speaker 1: a cigar shaped airship is just a cigar shaped there 122 00:06:56,440 --> 00:06:59,000 Speaker 1: and it crashed and burned too, So he was probably 123 00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:01,560 Speaker 1: pretty stoked that he'd have his name on it. Yeah, 124 00:07:01,560 --> 00:07:06,680 Speaker 1: he very famously went yeah when he heard the news exactly. So, uh, 125 00:07:07,000 --> 00:07:10,160 Speaker 1: we should probably stopped making light of this nearly eighty 126 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:15,440 Speaker 1: year old tragedy because people did die, you know. Yeah, 127 00:07:15,720 --> 00:07:19,680 Speaker 1: I mean, should we tell the story? All right? Well, 128 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: it took off on May three seven, had thirty six 129 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:29,000 Speaker 1: passengers and officers and crew members and trainees, left Frankfort 130 00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:33,000 Speaker 1: at about seven fifteen and then crossed out over the 131 00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:35,040 Speaker 1: Atlantic at about two am the next day. It's not 132 00:07:35,120 --> 00:07:38,160 Speaker 1: super fast travel. It was compared to the ship travel 133 00:07:38,240 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 1: at the time. It was it took about half the 134 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:43,200 Speaker 1: time to cross the Atlantic as it did in a boat. Yeah, 135 00:07:43,200 --> 00:07:45,440 Speaker 1: but compared to what we're used to Oh yeah, you 136 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:49,880 Speaker 1: were just it was leisurely. Um And apparently after reading 137 00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:52,840 Speaker 1: more about the Hindenburgh, it's not as um And I 138 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:55,040 Speaker 1: guess ship travels sort of the same way, like we're 139 00:07:55,040 --> 00:07:57,600 Speaker 1: going to get there when we get there, like we're heading, 140 00:07:57,840 --> 00:07:59,720 Speaker 1: we're trying to get there and then but you never 141 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:01,720 Speaker 1: know what gonna happen, right, That's why they called them 142 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:06,160 Speaker 1: the leisure class, that's right. Uh, it follows followed a 143 00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:12,040 Speaker 1: northern track across the ocean. Um eventually crossed uh into 144 00:08:12,080 --> 00:08:14,920 Speaker 1: North America, over the coast of Newfoundland and arrived in 145 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:20,520 Speaker 1: lake Hurst, New Jersey about twelve hours late. And um, Germans, 146 00:08:20,520 --> 00:08:25,320 Speaker 1: they're always late, they're famous for it. And basically arrived 147 00:08:25,360 --> 00:08:28,080 Speaker 1: there at the Naval air station, and because of poor weather, 148 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:32,080 Speaker 1: the captain and the commanding officer on the ground said, 149 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:34,680 Speaker 1: you know what, the weather is not so great. Let's 150 00:08:34,720 --> 00:08:37,520 Speaker 1: wait a little bit, um, because they can fly around 151 00:08:37,520 --> 00:08:40,560 Speaker 1: forever in those things. And he said, all right, well, 152 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:42,360 Speaker 1: the Jersey shore is nice. Let's just go fly about 153 00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:44,120 Speaker 1: that and tell everyone to look around and look at 154 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:47,120 Speaker 1: all those old timey bathing suits and they're up to 155 00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:52,439 Speaker 1: the ankles and water. Um. By six pm, UM conditions 156 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:56,080 Speaker 1: had improved and at six twelve he sent a message 157 00:08:56,080 --> 00:09:00,000 Speaker 1: sand it's suitable for landing. Recommended landing now. About seven 158 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:03,439 Speaker 1: eight he finally UH pulled the blimp in. It was 159 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:06,840 Speaker 1: a bit of a dodgy approach, but he eventually, you know, 160 00:09:06,960 --> 00:09:10,720 Speaker 1: got it down towards the ground pretty you know, uh skillfully, which, 161 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:12,800 Speaker 1: as we'll see, it's not as easy as you'd think, 162 00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:16,439 Speaker 1: even though it's not in practice. No, they dropped the 163 00:09:16,520 --> 00:09:23,480 Speaker 1: landing lines and then things went south like really fast. Yeah. 164 00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:29,760 Speaker 1: It was filled with hydrogen, which is the lightest element, right, Yeah, 165 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:33,760 Speaker 1: and uh it's also probably the most flammable or one 166 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:38,960 Speaker 1: of them. Yes, inflammable was a big error at the time. Um, 167 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:40,839 Speaker 1: a lot of blimps had caught on fire. This was 168 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:45,160 Speaker 1: not the first accident, and uh there was you know, 169 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:47,920 Speaker 1: people testified afterward, because not everyone died. We'll get to 170 00:09:48,120 --> 00:09:50,719 Speaker 1: the numbers here at the end of the story. But um, 171 00:09:50,720 --> 00:09:54,400 Speaker 1: there was testimony that, um, it appeared as if gas 172 00:09:54,440 --> 00:09:56,840 Speaker 1: was pushing against the cover. Maybe it escaped from a 173 00:09:56,880 --> 00:10:03,760 Speaker 1: gas cell. The first visible aimes appeared, and it varies, 174 00:10:03,800 --> 00:10:05,760 Speaker 1: but most of witness to say that the first flames 175 00:10:05,760 --> 00:10:08,079 Speaker 1: are either at the top of the hall uh, forward 176 00:10:08,120 --> 00:10:11,760 Speaker 1: of the vertical fin or between the rear port engine 177 00:10:11,840 --> 00:10:14,160 Speaker 1: in the port fin. And they described it as a 178 00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:18,120 Speaker 1: mushroom shaped flower. And it pretty much engulfed the tail 179 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:21,720 Speaker 1: like right away, and it was able to remain steady 180 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:23,679 Speaker 1: for a little while. Like people could start jumping out 181 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: at this point. Well, those are the people who died, 182 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: correct Now, That's what I always heard, or that's what 183 00:10:29,679 --> 00:10:32,480 Speaker 1: I have heard is that the people who stayed in 184 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:36,880 Speaker 1: the gondola lived and the people who jumped were the 185 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:40,040 Speaker 1: ones that died because the flames, because the hydrogen is light, 186 00:10:40,480 --> 00:10:44,520 Speaker 1: they were burning upward. Well, it says here basically it 187 00:10:44,600 --> 00:10:47,520 Speaker 1: was all depended on where you were. If you were 188 00:10:47,559 --> 00:10:51,280 Speaker 1: close to a means of exit, you generally survived. Um, 189 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:53,880 Speaker 1: if you were deep inside the ship, like in the 190 00:10:53,880 --> 00:10:56,600 Speaker 1: power room along the keel, or in the smoking room. 191 00:10:56,840 --> 00:11:00,600 Speaker 1: Smoking room in the end, I'm supposed it wasn't all smoking, 192 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:06,920 Speaker 1: big blimpful of hydrogen. Oh yeah, yeah, it's not a 193 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:10,880 Speaker 1: good yet. They had apparently a double um air locked door, 194 00:11:11,280 --> 00:11:15,199 Speaker 1: one electric lighter and um you were allowed to smoke 195 00:11:15,600 --> 00:11:17,240 Speaker 1: as long as you put it out before you left. 196 00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:21,599 Speaker 1: And UM, so, like I said, if you were in 197 00:11:21,640 --> 00:11:25,160 Speaker 1: the smoking room on B deck, you're in big trouble. Um. 198 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:28,360 Speaker 1: If you were one of the nine men closest to 199 00:11:28,400 --> 00:11:32,600 Speaker 1: the front of the ship, you definitely didn't survive. Yeah. 200 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:36,000 Speaker 1: So out of the ninety seven people on board sixty 201 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:38,360 Speaker 1: two survived. I think when you see the footage, I 202 00:11:38,400 --> 00:11:41,400 Speaker 1: mean you can watch it on YouTube, it looks like 203 00:11:41,400 --> 00:11:43,199 Speaker 1: how in the world could anyone survive it? Because it 204 00:11:43,240 --> 00:11:45,640 Speaker 1: goes I mean it's fully burned in less than a 205 00:11:45,640 --> 00:11:48,480 Speaker 1: minute and on the ground went up fast. But sixty 206 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,800 Speaker 1: two to survive, thirteen of the thirty six passengers and 207 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:54,520 Speaker 1: twenty two of the sixty one crew. And there's still 208 00:11:54,520 --> 00:11:58,960 Speaker 1: two guys alive today. Yeah, we checked two years ago, 209 00:11:59,440 --> 00:12:01,200 Speaker 1: but they don't like to talk about it. I can 210 00:12:01,320 --> 00:12:05,280 Speaker 1: imagine there's one kinetic experience. They're both named Verner, Verner 211 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,400 Speaker 1: Franz and wernerd Doner. The two Verner and one was 212 00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:10,800 Speaker 1: a little cabin boy and one was a passenger with 213 00:12:10,840 --> 00:12:14,600 Speaker 1: his family. And uh, they were contacted for like the 214 00:12:15,720 --> 00:12:18,599 Speaker 1: you know, the ceremony. I guess you don't call it 215 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:25,079 Speaker 1: an anniversary. I guess, uh memorial. Yeah, it just sounds 216 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:28,040 Speaker 1: like a party, you know. But they said, no, we're 217 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:29,800 Speaker 1: not coming. We don't like to talk about it. Yeah. 218 00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:32,520 Speaker 1: So it's been a long standing mystery exactly what happened. 219 00:12:32,520 --> 00:12:36,360 Speaker 1: And I found an article in the UK Independent from 220 00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:39,680 Speaker 1: two thousand thirteen about a study from that year that 221 00:12:39,880 --> 00:12:43,280 Speaker 1: found they said they they figured it out. They built 222 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:45,920 Speaker 1: like scale models of the Hindenburg, which was like two 223 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:48,520 Speaker 1: and a half football fields long. By the way, they 224 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:51,800 Speaker 1: were building scale models that were like like sixty ft long, 225 00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:54,360 Speaker 1: so good sized ones, and they tried to blow them 226 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:56,880 Speaker 1: up because there was a rumor that it was sabotage. 227 00:12:57,280 --> 00:13:01,040 Speaker 1: You know that everybody hated the Nazis even then. Um 228 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:04,600 Speaker 1: and uh, they tried all all manners stuff, and what 229 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:07,880 Speaker 1: they finally figured out was that probably what happened was 230 00:13:07,920 --> 00:13:12,439 Speaker 1: from being in that stormy weather, that exterior the envelope 231 00:13:12,440 --> 00:13:18,000 Speaker 1: of the blimp became um electrified, and when the ground 232 00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:20,640 Speaker 1: crew ran up and grabbed the cables, they completed the 233 00:13:20,679 --> 00:13:23,400 Speaker 1: current from the blimp to the ground, which caused a 234 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:28,240 Speaker 1: spark which actually um ignited a hydrogen leak that fire 235 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:32,160 Speaker 1: caused out. Yeah. Yeah. One thing they say it definitely 236 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:35,080 Speaker 1: isn't which they long thought it was, was the actual 237 00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: fabric was like painted in this flammable stuff, and that's 238 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:42,640 Speaker 1: not true. It was the standard fabric. It was just 239 00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:50,520 Speaker 1: a big balloon fill of hydrogen. Yeah. So when that happened, Um, 240 00:13:50,679 --> 00:13:55,800 Speaker 1: the future of blimps were just pretty much like that 241 00:13:55,880 --> 00:13:58,960 Speaker 1: was it for blimps. That wasn't the immediate end. But 242 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:02,240 Speaker 1: as far as like commercial blimp travel, that's tough for 243 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:04,320 Speaker 1: an industry to get over. So it kind of fell 244 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:07,360 Speaker 1: on the wayside, although they did continue on UM in 245 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:11,520 Speaker 1: a couple of forms. Up until the sixties, the US government, 246 00:14:11,679 --> 00:14:16,080 Speaker 1: especially the Navy, maintained blimps. One of the UM I 247 00:14:16,120 --> 00:14:17,600 Speaker 1: think that I guess the Air Force. I don't know 248 00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 1: is the Navy, but one of the branches of the 249 00:14:20,000 --> 00:14:24,200 Speaker 1: U s military use blimps as UM giant aircraft carriers 250 00:14:24,240 --> 00:14:28,840 Speaker 1: of the air, not not the sea, the air, which 251 00:14:28,880 --> 00:14:31,720 Speaker 1: is pretty awesome. And apparently they had them so you 252 00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:35,440 Speaker 1: could connect like a light plane to what's called like 253 00:14:35,440 --> 00:14:38,240 Speaker 1: a trapeeze mechanism coming out of the bottom of the 254 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:41,080 Speaker 1: blimps and just like hook your plane on, climb up 255 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:44,120 Speaker 1: and say, hey, guys, where are we going? Or you 256 00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,120 Speaker 1: can take off from there too. What yes, how do 257 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:49,120 Speaker 1: you take off? You just drop I think you just 258 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:52,240 Speaker 1: released the hook from the trapeez and starting of free 259 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:54,920 Speaker 1: fall and then you just go often to the distance 260 00:14:54,920 --> 00:14:58,160 Speaker 1: and go thanks for the ride, lady. That sounds really weird. UM. 261 00:14:58,240 --> 00:15:01,040 Speaker 1: And they had even bigger plans that were never realized 262 00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:03,680 Speaker 1: because the Navy scrapped the program, and I think nineteen 263 00:15:04,160 --> 00:15:07,640 Speaker 1: two UM to have like a landing strip on top 264 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:10,280 Speaker 1: of the blimp so you could have just like planes 265 00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 1: takeoff and land and then be stored like in the blimp, 266 00:15:14,760 --> 00:15:17,920 Speaker 1: which would have been pretty awesome. Well, cargo airships are 267 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:21,320 Speaker 1: the wave of the future, perhaps, so we'll see. So, 268 00:15:21,480 --> 00:15:25,280 Speaker 1: but that was the military was involved in blimps for 269 00:15:25,640 --> 00:15:28,840 Speaker 1: most of the first half of the twentieth century and 270 00:15:28,840 --> 00:15:31,520 Speaker 1: then um, our friends a good Year came up with 271 00:15:31,560 --> 00:15:34,840 Speaker 1: a blimp that has really served them well. Like they 272 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:37,960 Speaker 1: were making blimps for the military, and then um they 273 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:42,320 Speaker 1: started using them for commercial purposes and everybody knows about 274 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:44,640 Speaker 1: good Year thanks to those blimps. Yeah, and they're going 275 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:46,440 Speaker 1: to figure in here, of course, because you can't talk 276 00:15:46,480 --> 00:15:48,840 Speaker 1: about blimps a lot without a ton of buzz marketing 277 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:52,880 Speaker 1: for good Year. Um. But you know that's where they 278 00:15:52,920 --> 00:15:55,560 Speaker 1: make their name. In fact, my in laws almost wrote 279 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:58,160 Speaker 1: on the one based out of Akron because that's where 280 00:15:58,160 --> 00:16:00,720 Speaker 1: they're from. And they think he was going to put 281 00:16:00,720 --> 00:16:04,800 Speaker 1: in a bid on a like an auction bid to 282 00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:07,680 Speaker 1: win a trip Nate, And I think it never happened. 283 00:16:08,120 --> 00:16:10,880 Speaker 1: The trip never happened. I think he either lost the bid. 284 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:12,360 Speaker 1: I'll have to ask him, but I don't think they 285 00:16:12,360 --> 00:16:14,760 Speaker 1: ever wrote on the blimp. Okay, I was gonna say 286 00:16:14,760 --> 00:16:16,520 Speaker 1: if the trip never happened. That doesn't sound like the 287 00:16:16,520 --> 00:16:20,920 Speaker 1: good Year I know. No, No, they're very uh, they're 288 00:16:20,920 --> 00:16:23,960 Speaker 1: like the Germans. So they've got there's three, um good 289 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:27,440 Speaker 1: Year blimps. Actually there's one and I believe Texas, there's 290 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:31,600 Speaker 1: one in California. There's one in Ohio orres A, Florida, California, 291 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: and Ohio is what it is. I'm sorry. Um, the 292 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:37,520 Speaker 1: spirit of good Year, the spirit of America, the spirit 293 00:16:37,560 --> 00:16:41,000 Speaker 1: of innovation, and chuck. About the time this episode comes out, 294 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:45,640 Speaker 1: Robin Roberts, the TV personality, is going to be christening 295 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:49,080 Speaker 1: the newest member of the fleet, the wing foot one. Nice. 296 00:16:49,640 --> 00:16:51,960 Speaker 1: So they're gonna have four, Yeah, because there's a lot 297 00:16:52,000 --> 00:16:54,480 Speaker 1: of sporting events there. Sure, and you can't watch a 298 00:16:54,480 --> 00:16:57,960 Speaker 1: big sporting event without hearing the words uh aerial coverage 299 00:16:58,040 --> 00:17:01,040 Speaker 1: provided by good Year. Yeah. And those shots, man, they're 300 00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:04,520 Speaker 1: pretty great, they really are. We haven't been around forever. 301 00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:06,760 Speaker 1: It was I think an Orange Bowl in Miami where 302 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: the first one was broadcast and what like the sixties 303 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:14,880 Speaker 1: maybe I don't know, something like that, and it changed America. Yeah, 304 00:17:14,960 --> 00:17:17,159 Speaker 1: well it um certainly gives them a lot of press 305 00:17:17,400 --> 00:17:19,920 Speaker 1: and saves well, I don't know about saves some money. 306 00:17:19,880 --> 00:17:22,840 Speaker 1: I haven't seen their balance sheet, but it's they don't 307 00:17:22,840 --> 00:17:25,280 Speaker 1: have to spend money on that thirty second spot. They 308 00:17:25,280 --> 00:17:29,400 Speaker 1: still do to tie into the blimp, but it's great 309 00:17:29,440 --> 00:17:34,480 Speaker 1: advertising for them. Yeah. Um. They also were good Sports 310 00:17:34,560 --> 00:17:37,440 Speaker 1: in a movie called Black Sunday. Did you ever see 311 00:17:37,440 --> 00:17:40,520 Speaker 1: that movie? Of course I never saw it. Um, but 312 00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:44,600 Speaker 1: apparently they provided Um, they provided some of the footage 313 00:17:44,640 --> 00:17:49,760 Speaker 1: for the movie, and UM let their blimps be used. Uh, 314 00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:52,080 Speaker 1: and let their name be used even like it wasn't 315 00:17:52,119 --> 00:17:56,320 Speaker 1: like the the Good Wire blimp. You know, they didn't 316 00:17:56,320 --> 00:17:59,280 Speaker 1: try to have to change it just enough. They used Goodyear, 317 00:17:59,320 --> 00:18:02,160 Speaker 1: which made the whole thing even more terrifying and realistic. Yeah, 318 00:18:02,160 --> 00:18:04,240 Speaker 1: they wanted to kill everyone at the super Bowl. That 319 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:09,440 Speaker 1: was the plot. Uh, with a blimp right that shot darts, 320 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:12,960 Speaker 1: which is weird. But it was written by the guy 321 00:18:12,960 --> 00:18:15,560 Speaker 1: who wrote Silence of the Lambs. Oh. Yeah, he's a 322 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:17,760 Speaker 1: good writer. Have you ever read any of his books? 323 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:21,680 Speaker 1: Oh he was the book writer. Oh no, I didn't 324 00:18:21,680 --> 00:18:24,359 Speaker 1: know that. No, I haven't read any of Silence at 325 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:29,200 Speaker 1: the way. He does very good research. Interesting guy. Um. Anyway, 326 00:18:29,240 --> 00:18:32,639 Speaker 1: so good Year good Year in the military. After the Hindenburg. 327 00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:35,359 Speaker 1: That was the two cases of blimps. But like you said, 328 00:18:35,920 --> 00:18:39,399 Speaker 1: there is potentially a future for blimps, which we'll talk about. 329 00:18:39,800 --> 00:18:42,080 Speaker 1: But first let's talk about how blimps work in general. 330 00:18:42,160 --> 00:18:53,679 Speaker 1: After these messages, you want to know how blimps work, buddy, 331 00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:57,600 Speaker 1: I do it pretty simple. This was the delight to 332 00:18:57,720 --> 00:19:00,359 Speaker 1: learn because it was like, oh, I thought would be 333 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,440 Speaker 1: just that little to it. And that's really kind of 334 00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:05,760 Speaker 1: the case, right, Yeah, yeah, there's not like oh and 335 00:19:05,800 --> 00:19:08,840 Speaker 1: here's where it gets really hard. They're like the pontoon 336 00:19:08,880 --> 00:19:11,840 Speaker 1: boats of the sky. Yeah. Like the most complicated thing 337 00:19:11,840 --> 00:19:14,119 Speaker 1: on the blimp is probably the gyroscopic camera on the 338 00:19:14,119 --> 00:19:17,240 Speaker 1: front of it to film the football stadium. I think 339 00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:20,280 Speaker 1: you're right. Uh So, let's talk about the anatomy of 340 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:22,320 Speaker 1: a blamp you have. You mentioned the envelope earlier. That 341 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:24,320 Speaker 1: is the thing that you're looking at. That is key 342 00:19:24,400 --> 00:19:31,600 Speaker 1: big cigar shaped balloon. It's filled nowadays with helium. It 343 00:19:31,720 --> 00:19:35,959 Speaker 1: is that shape because of aerodynamics, of course, and they 344 00:19:35,960 --> 00:19:38,280 Speaker 1: are super lightweight and super strong. Like you were saying, 345 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:42,639 Speaker 1: neoprene to ply neoprene polyester generally, is that what the 346 00:19:42,720 --> 00:19:45,440 Speaker 1: envelopes made of. There's a company um called the i 347 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:48,800 Speaker 1: LC Dover Corporation. They make a lot of skins UM 348 00:19:48,840 --> 00:19:53,040 Speaker 1: and they use the same material that they make UM 349 00:19:53,280 --> 00:19:56,960 Speaker 1: space suits out of for NASA for blimps. Too good 350 00:19:57,040 --> 00:19:59,720 Speaker 1: enough for Neil Armstrong, Buddy, good enough for my blimp. 351 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:05,040 Speaker 1: This is like all about Ohio. This one. Oh was here, Ohio? Yeah, yeah, 352 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,840 Speaker 1: I let have done it. So it was good here. No, 353 00:20:07,840 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: No I knew that. Um, there were your in laws. 354 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:14,159 Speaker 1: That's right. The envelopes they hold UM. And it depends 355 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:16,480 Speaker 1: on the blimps for all of these statistics, of course. 356 00:20:16,960 --> 00:20:19,800 Speaker 1: But between sixty seven thousand and two hundred and fifty 357 00:20:19,800 --> 00:20:24,200 Speaker 1: thousand cubic feet of helium and um, it's not super 358 00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:26,960 Speaker 1: The pressure is really low inside point zero seven pounds 359 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:29,600 Speaker 1: per square inch. So that's why if you shot a 360 00:20:29,640 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 1: blimp it wouldn't like fall. No, I just leak very 361 00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:36,439 Speaker 1: slowly and you just land it and patch it up. 362 00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:40,560 Speaker 1: I guess, yeah, very slowly. Yeah. British Ministry of Defense 363 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:44,560 Speaker 1: fired hundreds of bullets into an airship just for fun, well, 364 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:46,360 Speaker 1: not to see what if it would could be shot 365 00:20:46,440 --> 00:20:49,720 Speaker 1: down in battle basically, and uh it took many hours 366 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:52,840 Speaker 1: to deflate and land. So and they don't even deflate them. 367 00:20:52,880 --> 00:20:55,880 Speaker 1: They just leave them that way, so they're they're natural 368 00:20:56,000 --> 00:21:00,399 Speaker 1: structure will not natural, but their original structure UM events 369 00:21:00,440 --> 00:21:03,480 Speaker 1: them from being shot down. That's one big benefit. Because 370 00:21:03,480 --> 00:21:06,199 Speaker 1: I was wondering about that. I was like, you're just 371 00:21:06,280 --> 00:21:08,679 Speaker 1: providing a target for every teenager with a gun in 372 00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:12,440 Speaker 1: any country that you hover a blimp over. UM. Now 373 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:15,280 Speaker 1: I understand. But secondly, as we'll see, it also has 374 00:21:15,320 --> 00:21:19,879 Speaker 1: to do with the dynamics of the flight of UM 375 00:21:20,119 --> 00:21:23,720 Speaker 1: hovering in the atmosphere. UM. So you've got the envelope, 376 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:27,240 Speaker 1: and the envelope also has something called nose cone battons, 377 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:30,600 Speaker 1: which is basically like a support structure for the nose 378 00:21:30,680 --> 00:21:32,840 Speaker 1: the front of it just the very very tip, and 379 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:37,040 Speaker 1: it keeps the the the the blimps front from being 380 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:40,960 Speaker 1: mashed in as it moves forward, which is pretty smart. Yeah, 381 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:42,919 Speaker 1: I think I misspoke. The nose cone is on just 382 00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:44,600 Speaker 1: the very tip, and then the batons are like the 383 00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:48,399 Speaker 1: fingers that distribute the stress over the front of the cone. Okay, 384 00:21:48,440 --> 00:21:52,440 Speaker 1: so they're like the the the structure that comes out 385 00:21:52,440 --> 00:21:55,399 Speaker 1: of the nose, right, and then also on the nose 386 00:21:55,840 --> 00:21:59,600 Speaker 1: as the mooring um hook. Because you've got to hook 387 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:01,880 Speaker 1: a blimp up to something. Yeah, it's got a little 388 00:22:01,880 --> 00:22:04,720 Speaker 1: spindle there, and it's got a little wheel under the 389 00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:08,560 Speaker 1: tail rudder, and that's basically how it sits. You just 390 00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:12,560 Speaker 1: tie it down. Yeah, very simple. Um, just like a balloon. 391 00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:17,520 Speaker 1: That's right. So there's here's where it gets a little craftier, 392 00:22:18,040 --> 00:22:22,600 Speaker 1: like nineteen century crafty, but still neat nonetheless. Um, there's 393 00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:26,520 Speaker 1: something called balonetts, right, and these are basically air bladders 394 00:22:26,680 --> 00:22:30,840 Speaker 1: that are located within the envelope, and you inflate or 395 00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:33,879 Speaker 1: deflate them depending on whether you want the blimp to 396 00:22:33,920 --> 00:22:36,160 Speaker 1: go up or down. If you wanted to go up, 397 00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:39,439 Speaker 1: you deflate these balonets. You wanted to go down, you 398 00:22:39,520 --> 00:22:42,080 Speaker 1: inflate them. And the reason that works is because you're 399 00:22:42,440 --> 00:22:47,440 Speaker 1: inflating or you're inflating these balonettes with air and helium, 400 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:51,520 Speaker 1: which blimps fly using now is lighter than air. So 401 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,600 Speaker 1: more air means the blimps heavier, so it goes down. 402 00:22:55,040 --> 00:22:57,840 Speaker 1: Less air means it's lighter, so it goes up. Yeah, 403 00:22:57,880 --> 00:22:59,720 Speaker 1: it's pretty easy. It's sort of like how a submarine 404 00:22:59,720 --> 00:23:02,960 Speaker 1: opera rates. Um. And there's one in the four and 405 00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:05,840 Speaker 1: one in the aft, so that's how you control your trim. 406 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:07,480 Speaker 1: You can just knows it up or knows it down, 407 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:13,440 Speaker 1: filling up or deflating. That's the pitch axis, that's right, 408 00:23:14,480 --> 00:23:19,720 Speaker 1: or trim Okay, well, the trim is the levelness okay. Yeah. 409 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:22,680 Speaker 1: And the axis where the nose and the back go 410 00:23:22,920 --> 00:23:25,680 Speaker 1: up and down, that's the trim axis. You know, the 411 00:23:26,359 --> 00:23:32,399 Speaker 1: pitch axis, right, yeah, okay, no one can see not 412 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:36,840 Speaker 1: in agreement, okay, um chuck. Then there's the caternary curtain 413 00:23:37,480 --> 00:23:41,280 Speaker 1: and the suspension cables, which I didn't get the caternary 414 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:44,600 Speaker 1: curtain really I understood. The suspension cable is just fine. Uh. 415 00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:49,520 Speaker 1: It's on the on the inside about off center. Um. 416 00:23:49,560 --> 00:23:53,640 Speaker 1: And it basically if you look, it sort of looks 417 00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:56,240 Speaker 1: like the where you attach the basket to the hot 418 00:23:56,280 --> 00:23:59,800 Speaker 1: air balloon. They all, um, you know, there's a number 419 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:03,080 Speaker 1: of these lines that run down and I'll meet at 420 00:24:03,119 --> 00:24:07,760 Speaker 1: a single point, um near the gondola, right, and that's 421 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:10,800 Speaker 1: what you attach the gondola to the blimp using right. Yeah. 422 00:24:10,840 --> 00:24:14,000 Speaker 1: So basically, if if you if the blimp envelope wasn't there, 423 00:24:14,400 --> 00:24:16,000 Speaker 1: it would sort of look like a hot air balloon. 424 00:24:16,000 --> 00:24:17,680 Speaker 1: It would have these lines that run up from the 425 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:20,800 Speaker 1: gondola a k A basket up to the top, so 426 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:26,119 Speaker 1: they would be like the um vertical lines are the 427 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:30,920 Speaker 1: horizontal lines. Okay, I understand exact amundo. Um. Then you've 428 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:34,119 Speaker 1: got the really technical stuff, the flight control surfaces. So 429 00:24:34,160 --> 00:24:37,000 Speaker 1: everything we've just described as basically balloons and then the 430 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:41,280 Speaker 1: structure that gives the balloon it's shape, right and then um, 431 00:24:41,520 --> 00:24:45,880 Speaker 1: the flight control surfaces are basically a rudder and elevators 432 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,720 Speaker 1: and they're the things that you can control to make 433 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:53,320 Speaker 1: the balloon till upward or side to side. That's pretty 434 00:24:53,400 --> 00:24:56,720 Speaker 1: much it. Yeah, there's that one rudder on the top 435 00:24:56,760 --> 00:24:59,480 Speaker 1: and bottom and that controls your yaw and you do 436 00:24:59,520 --> 00:25:01,200 Speaker 1: it with little If you look at the captain's sherry, 437 00:25:01,160 --> 00:25:03,680 Speaker 1: he's got a little little foot pedals. It's like a 438 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:07,199 Speaker 1: clutch pedal you would put in, push in and um. 439 00:25:07,760 --> 00:25:10,760 Speaker 1: On the bottom very bottom back of the rudder, there's 440 00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:14,919 Speaker 1: something called a boost tab and that's just a little additional, uh, 441 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:18,560 Speaker 1: sectioned off piece of the rudder that's also controllable. It's 442 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:21,760 Speaker 1: like a little mini rudder and um it assists with 443 00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:23,760 Speaker 1: the rudder I think to make an even tighter turn. 444 00:25:24,359 --> 00:25:27,200 Speaker 1: So if you imagine just the smaller rudder as part 445 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:30,320 Speaker 1: of the main rudder, just to give you that extra boost, 446 00:25:30,359 --> 00:25:32,520 Speaker 1: I guess when you need to turn. Uh. And then 447 00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:36,600 Speaker 1: there's two elevators and they um. If you are sitting 448 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:39,040 Speaker 1: in your little captain's chair, imagine a car steering wheel 449 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:43,359 Speaker 1: placed vertically like by your side. And that's just a 450 00:25:43,359 --> 00:25:46,359 Speaker 1: wheel that you turn up and turn down. It's really 451 00:25:46,560 --> 00:25:50,719 Speaker 1: very basic. It sounds like the Wizard of Oz. The curtain, 452 00:25:50,800 --> 00:25:54,960 Speaker 1: like all the machineries messing with it looks very steampunky 453 00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:57,239 Speaker 1: when you look at it. Uh. So you steer up 454 00:25:57,320 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: or down with that wheel, and uh, that's pretty much it. 455 00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:04,200 Speaker 1: I don't know. Don't forget the engines. Oh well yeah, 456 00:26:04,200 --> 00:26:06,640 Speaker 1: I mean as far as like driving this puppy. Yeah. 457 00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:09,119 Speaker 1: The flight control Yeah, this is what separates it from 458 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:12,680 Speaker 1: hot air balloons. Don't forget the engines. Know the hot 459 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:15,920 Speaker 1: the well, yeah, the engines, but also the flight control services. 460 00:26:16,160 --> 00:26:20,200 Speaker 1: But the engines are turbo prop engines. Right. There's twin ones, 461 00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:22,800 Speaker 1: which means there's two one on each side of the 462 00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:26,040 Speaker 1: gondola at the rear, and they're pretty cool because they 463 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:30,800 Speaker 1: propeled the thing forward but very cleverly. There's also something 464 00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:36,200 Speaker 1: called air scoops that are basically these funnels that face 465 00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,679 Speaker 1: the back of the turbo prop and they catch the 466 00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:43,320 Speaker 1: vented air out of the props and they use those 467 00:26:43,560 --> 00:26:48,520 Speaker 1: to inflate the balonetts. Yeah, that's called prop wash. This 468 00:26:48,600 --> 00:26:51,199 Speaker 1: is all the lingo I've learned. That's good stuff. Uh. 469 00:26:51,359 --> 00:26:54,399 Speaker 1: And the engines are just six cylinder engines. Like I 470 00:26:54,440 --> 00:26:56,080 Speaker 1: said that, you don't need a ton of power to 471 00:26:56,119 --> 00:26:59,520 Speaker 1: power these things. And you can go at about thirty 472 00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:03,520 Speaker 1: the seventy This says miles per hour, not knots. So 473 00:27:03,560 --> 00:27:08,399 Speaker 1: how about that? And seventies cruising apparently, like fifty is 474 00:27:08,480 --> 00:27:11,600 Speaker 1: where you want to be get this. I did the calculations. 475 00:27:11,640 --> 00:27:14,400 Speaker 1: So one of the um one of the great advantages 476 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:16,840 Speaker 1: blimps have, which is the reason we've been talking about 477 00:27:16,880 --> 00:27:19,960 Speaker 1: these things, or anybody's talking about still making blimps, is 478 00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:24,679 Speaker 1: that they can stay aloft for days, weeks, even um, 479 00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:26,920 Speaker 1: which gives them a huge advantage of our airplanes, which 480 00:27:26,920 --> 00:27:29,600 Speaker 1: have to stop and refuel and stop and refuel. But 481 00:27:30,080 --> 00:27:33,760 Speaker 1: going seventy miles per hour chuck, a blimp NonStop at 482 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:37,359 Speaker 1: that rate could travel the circumference of the Earth around 483 00:27:37,400 --> 00:27:43,480 Speaker 1: the equator in fourteen days. That in the fuel, yeah, 484 00:27:43,600 --> 00:27:47,160 Speaker 1: which I think is not very hard. No, they at 485 00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:51,200 Speaker 1: thirty knots. The sky ship, which is this one example. 486 00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:55,680 Speaker 1: UM consumes about eight gallons of fuel per hour, so 487 00:27:55,880 --> 00:27:58,800 Speaker 1: apparently during an entire week of operations, it consumes less 488 00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:02,159 Speaker 1: fuel than a seven sixties seven commercial jet uses to 489 00:28:02,240 --> 00:28:06,560 Speaker 1: move away from the gate. So it's super green, which 490 00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:09,120 Speaker 1: is kind of cool. You can understand why cargo companies 491 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:11,680 Speaker 1: are looking at them too. Yeah, and that's it runs 492 00:28:11,720 --> 00:28:15,119 Speaker 1: on av gas, of course, not just regular old gas. 493 00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:17,199 Speaker 1: You couldn't pull it up to a gas station like 494 00:28:17,280 --> 00:28:20,600 Speaker 1: your car because I think av gas is still leaded 495 00:28:20,880 --> 00:28:23,439 Speaker 1: or a lot of it is. Oh and that's the 496 00:28:23,480 --> 00:28:27,800 Speaker 1: diff that's not that cream. Yeah, true, but they're not 497 00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:31,120 Speaker 1: burning much of it. Uh. So let's see what else 498 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:33,119 Speaker 1: is there. The valves. You've got to be able to 499 00:28:33,160 --> 00:28:35,000 Speaker 1: let air in and out. You also want to be 500 00:28:35,040 --> 00:28:36,880 Speaker 1: able to let air in and out of the envelope 501 00:28:36,920 --> 00:28:40,360 Speaker 1: itself in case things become too pressurized. You don't want 502 00:28:40,360 --> 00:28:43,880 Speaker 1: to pop. Yeah, that's true. So you've got your air 503 00:28:43,960 --> 00:28:48,200 Speaker 1: valves for the UM for the bladders inside, and they're underneath. 504 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:51,480 Speaker 1: Uh to tow up front, two in the back, and 505 00:28:51,480 --> 00:28:53,360 Speaker 1: then you have your helium valve and you can either 506 00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:55,880 Speaker 1: vent it and you don't have to do this much 507 00:28:55,920 --> 00:28:59,680 Speaker 1: because you should have it pretty like the pressure set um. 508 00:28:59,760 --> 00:29:02,200 Speaker 1: But if something does happen, you can either manually do 509 00:29:02,200 --> 00:29:04,960 Speaker 1: it or it's set to automatically release. And if you 510 00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:06,560 Speaker 1: look at the good Year blimp, it's sort of been 511 00:29:06,640 --> 00:29:11,280 Speaker 1: the y of a Year, just looks like a little 512 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:14,760 Speaker 1: gas cap. You really know you're blimps man. Well, I 513 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:16,720 Speaker 1: mean I went to the good Year site. It's awesome. 514 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:20,480 Speaker 1: You can like there's all sorts of animated jifts and 515 00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:28,040 Speaker 1: or is it gifts? I never could yeah, yeah, graphic interface. Yeah, 516 00:29:28,040 --> 00:29:29,480 Speaker 1: but there is a correct way. I just don't know 517 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:31,640 Speaker 1: what it is. Well, the guy who created gifts says 518 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:36,000 Speaker 1: he pronounces it Jeff oh wrench in the works, but 519 00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:44,959 Speaker 1: I disagree with him. Morgellons give the good Year Blimp gondola, 520 00:29:45,120 --> 00:29:47,840 Speaker 1: which is where we are now, is twenty two point 521 00:29:47,920 --> 00:29:51,600 Speaker 1: seven five ft long. It is aluminum on welded steel 522 00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:56,160 Speaker 1: frame and that's where everyone rides. Um. Depending on your blimp, 523 00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:59,400 Speaker 1: it's gonna hold up to well. It depends on how 524 00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:01,360 Speaker 1: big the blimp, but usually you don't see a blimp 525 00:30:01,360 --> 00:30:04,320 Speaker 1: with more than twelve passengers or so. Yeah, and it's 526 00:30:04,360 --> 00:30:06,960 Speaker 1: not even necessarily passengers. The gondola can also be the 527 00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:09,320 Speaker 1: place where it holds all of the surveillance equipment to 528 00:30:10,320 --> 00:30:12,200 Speaker 1: depending on what you use it for, or it can 529 00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:15,840 Speaker 1: also be the massive cargo hold. Yeah, you've got your 530 00:30:15,840 --> 00:30:20,080 Speaker 1: communications up there, your flight surface controls, any KNAB equipment, 531 00:30:20,800 --> 00:30:25,280 Speaker 1: UM propeller controls. That's where all the there's there's not 532 00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:27,239 Speaker 1: much else to it besides what what you got there 533 00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:32,600 Speaker 1: in the gondola. What's funny is um I always thought 534 00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:37,040 Speaker 1: blimps were basically like, you know, you you get the 535 00:30:37,040 --> 00:30:38,760 Speaker 1: blimp in the air and it takes off and then 536 00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:41,880 Speaker 1: that's it. But it's it's at least with good Year. 537 00:30:42,280 --> 00:30:46,640 Speaker 1: It's kind of like UM got helicopter parents almost because 538 00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:48,480 Speaker 1: when the blimp. When you see the blimp, if you 539 00:30:48,560 --> 00:30:52,880 Speaker 1: look around, you'll also find a ground crew with a bus, 540 00:30:53,800 --> 00:30:58,479 Speaker 1: uh eighteen wheeler and a bunch of vans that follow 541 00:30:58,520 --> 00:31:02,160 Speaker 1: it everywhere because I guess those things break down. Yeah, 542 00:31:02,240 --> 00:31:05,160 Speaker 1: and apparently the pilots to their f A certified and 543 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:09,040 Speaker 1: Goodyear pilots also have another training program. But the pilots 544 00:31:09,040 --> 00:31:11,720 Speaker 1: are even it's all sort of everyone is cross trained. 545 00:31:11,760 --> 00:31:14,320 Speaker 1: It sounds like to work on the ground or make 546 00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:17,760 Speaker 1: repairs and um, yeah, it's like a little self contained unit, 547 00:31:19,080 --> 00:31:23,000 Speaker 1: all just traveling around together like a like h tornado chasers. 548 00:31:24,560 --> 00:31:27,880 Speaker 1: Oh and you talked about um the end. You know, 549 00:31:28,120 --> 00:31:30,080 Speaker 1: if they just took off and floated around, if the 550 00:31:30,080 --> 00:31:33,360 Speaker 1: engines did stop, that's exactly what you're doing. You're basically 551 00:31:33,360 --> 00:31:36,200 Speaker 1: a hot air balloon at that point, so you lose 552 00:31:36,240 --> 00:31:39,240 Speaker 1: control of the flight service controls. Yeah. Well, I mean 553 00:31:39,280 --> 00:31:42,280 Speaker 1: if it's they call it a free balloon, so it's 554 00:31:42,320 --> 00:31:45,840 Speaker 1: buoyant um, and it's kept aloft obviously, But if they 555 00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:48,400 Speaker 1: lose all the power, then all you can do is 556 00:31:48,440 --> 00:31:51,640 Speaker 1: ascend and descend. Because I think I guess the rudders 557 00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:55,400 Speaker 1: and the elevators are also powered mechanisms, just not just 558 00:31:55,440 --> 00:31:58,280 Speaker 1: attached to a cable attached to a pedal attached to 559 00:31:58,320 --> 00:32:01,200 Speaker 1: a wheel of the ne's It sounds like it is though, 560 00:32:01,560 --> 00:32:04,640 Speaker 1: And as far as weather goes, they compare it to 561 00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:08,880 Speaker 1: roughly operating is about as similar as a helicopter. Like 562 00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:11,960 Speaker 1: we can fly in bad weather, um, but we try 563 00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:15,360 Speaker 1: to avoid super bad weather. Yeah. I don't blame them 564 00:32:15,440 --> 00:32:18,280 Speaker 1: because I mean, that's not fun you want to be 565 00:32:18,320 --> 00:32:22,200 Speaker 1: above the rose bowl in like seventy degree weather. So 566 00:32:22,800 --> 00:32:26,600 Speaker 1: coming up, we're gonna talk about how blimps fly, and 567 00:32:26,640 --> 00:32:29,520 Speaker 1: then also the future of blimps and if there is 568 00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:42,240 Speaker 1: such a thing after this. So chuck. The way blimps 569 00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:46,840 Speaker 1: flies pretty simple and beautiful and elegant if you ask me, yeah, yeah, 570 00:32:47,120 --> 00:32:49,719 Speaker 1: So you have helium, right, yeah, which is they used 571 00:32:49,760 --> 00:32:54,000 Speaker 1: to use hydrogen. Helium slightly heavier than um hydrogen, but 572 00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:56,920 Speaker 1: not that much more. You don't notice the difference, I 573 00:32:56,920 --> 00:32:59,000 Speaker 1: would guess, Yeah, I mean you get why they use hydrogen. 574 00:32:59,200 --> 00:33:02,600 Speaker 1: They weren't dummies. It was lighter than air, the lightest 575 00:33:02,640 --> 00:33:04,800 Speaker 1: of all the gas of all the elements from what 576 00:33:04,840 --> 00:33:09,640 Speaker 1: I understand um. And when hydrogen blew up, they said, okay, 577 00:33:09,720 --> 00:33:11,760 Speaker 1: not hydrogen. What else do we have? And they said, well, 578 00:33:11,800 --> 00:33:15,680 Speaker 1: helium works, and so they started using helium. And helium 579 00:33:15,880 --> 00:33:21,320 Speaker 1: has a lift of lift capacity of point seventy pounds 580 00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:25,719 Speaker 1: per square foot, right, which is one point one kilograms 581 00:33:25,800 --> 00:33:29,800 Speaker 1: per square meter um, which means it can lift a 582 00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:34,680 Speaker 1: pretty decent amount of wait for just a little bit amount. 583 00:33:35,160 --> 00:33:38,520 Speaker 1: And since they're filling these balloons with hundreds of thousands 584 00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:43,840 Speaker 1: of cubic feet or cubic meters of these um of helium. 585 00:33:43,960 --> 00:33:46,920 Speaker 1: They can look tons and tons of weight, and they 586 00:33:46,960 --> 00:33:50,640 Speaker 1: do it by just simple physics, since helium is lighter 587 00:33:50,640 --> 00:33:54,680 Speaker 1: than air. As long as the helium has enough lifting 588 00:33:54,680 --> 00:33:57,960 Speaker 1: power to lift whatever the envelope and the gondola and 589 00:33:58,000 --> 00:34:01,120 Speaker 1: all of the mechanisms way, and it will rise more 590 00:34:01,160 --> 00:34:03,520 Speaker 1: than the air. It will rise into the air. Yeah, 591 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:07,080 Speaker 1: it's called positive buoyancy, and what you want as a 592 00:34:07,160 --> 00:34:10,600 Speaker 1: blimp pilot is neutral buoyancy. So that's why you're gonna control, 593 00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:13,839 Speaker 1: like we talked about your air bladders to uh get 594 00:34:13,880 --> 00:34:16,520 Speaker 1: that thing where it's Once you've got your cruising altitude, 595 00:34:16,560 --> 00:34:19,239 Speaker 1: you just want to be at the same level you 596 00:34:19,840 --> 00:34:22,480 Speaker 1: want and you want to fill it up by blowing 597 00:34:22,520 --> 00:34:25,800 Speaker 1: exhausted into your air scoops which fill up your balonets. 598 00:34:25,840 --> 00:34:29,080 Speaker 1: And the higher you get into the atmosphere, the less 599 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:31,640 Speaker 1: pressure there is, which means the higher up you could 600 00:34:31,640 --> 00:34:34,480 Speaker 1: float conceivably, So you want to make sure you get 601 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:36,920 Speaker 1: that air in so you don't just float away and 602 00:34:37,000 --> 00:34:40,600 Speaker 1: you achieve is it negative buoyancy or neutral buoyancy? You said, 603 00:34:40,880 --> 00:34:42,520 Speaker 1: that's what you want, and then when you want to land, 604 00:34:42,560 --> 00:34:45,400 Speaker 1: you do just the opposite. Um, you fill it up 605 00:34:45,440 --> 00:34:48,360 Speaker 1: with even more air and then you make the blimp 606 00:34:48,480 --> 00:34:52,520 Speaker 1: heavier than the helium inside can lift and it just 607 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:55,640 Speaker 1: slowly comes down to the ground. And I mean that's it. 608 00:34:55,800 --> 00:35:00,000 Speaker 1: That's how blimps rise and fall. Yeah, it is pretty simple. 609 00:35:00,200 --> 00:35:02,480 Speaker 1: And when they're on the ground, they just tie it 610 00:35:02,520 --> 00:35:04,640 Speaker 1: to that little spindle. You've got your little wheel under 611 00:35:04,680 --> 00:35:07,360 Speaker 1: the rear. You got a little tractor to tow it around, 612 00:35:07,960 --> 00:35:11,080 Speaker 1: maybe a hanger. And uh, that's the life of a blimp. 613 00:35:11,120 --> 00:35:13,760 Speaker 1: And it's like I said, they don't inflate and deflate these. 614 00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:18,799 Speaker 1: I'm sure it's a time and expense. Uh. And I 615 00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:21,120 Speaker 1: think they're running out of helium too. Didn't we learn that? Yeah? 616 00:35:21,200 --> 00:35:23,560 Speaker 1: Do you know much about that? Well, we we covered 617 00:35:23,560 --> 00:35:29,160 Speaker 1: it and uh, the probably the Mars turbine up Mars turbine. Yeah, 618 00:35:29,160 --> 00:35:31,840 Speaker 1: that was it. But I read a really interesting article 619 00:35:32,000 --> 00:35:35,200 Speaker 1: and I think the New Republic, I can't remember. I 620 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:38,640 Speaker 1: found it online last night, and um, it's about the 621 00:35:38,640 --> 00:35:41,160 Speaker 1: helium shortage and why we have a helium shortage and 622 00:35:41,200 --> 00:35:45,760 Speaker 1: apparently the US has had a reserve, a strategic helium 623 00:35:45,760 --> 00:35:52,040 Speaker 1: reserve since in a cave in Texas and Apparently during 624 00:35:52,080 --> 00:35:55,920 Speaker 1: the Clinton era, the government said, let's make some money 625 00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:58,600 Speaker 1: off of this, or let's make our money back off 626 00:35:58,640 --> 00:36:00,480 Speaker 1: of it, so they passed it all that said start 627 00:36:00,520 --> 00:36:04,880 Speaker 1: selling the stuff off Bureau of Land Management, but only 628 00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:09,040 Speaker 1: make enough money off of it to recoup whatever we've 629 00:36:09,040 --> 00:36:10,759 Speaker 1: put into it over the years, which is like one 630 00:36:10,800 --> 00:36:14,360 Speaker 1: billion dollars. So they started selling it, and by setting 631 00:36:14,400 --> 00:36:18,319 Speaker 1: the price artificially, they created an artificial market. Because this 632 00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:22,959 Speaker 1: is like of the world's helium reserves in this cave 633 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:25,839 Speaker 1: in Texas. So whatever the BLM was selling it for, 634 00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:29,360 Speaker 1: that's how much the market value was. But it was artificial, 635 00:36:29,480 --> 00:36:33,680 Speaker 1: so you had artificially cheap helium flooding the market, which 636 00:36:33,680 --> 00:36:36,160 Speaker 1: had a two pronged effect. One, it led to these 637 00:36:36,160 --> 00:36:38,960 Speaker 1: scarcities that we're running into now because they just started 638 00:36:38,960 --> 00:36:41,760 Speaker 1: selling it off in a fire sale the private industry. 639 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:44,839 Speaker 1: But the other more positive effect it had was that 640 00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:52,080 Speaker 1: it spurred all of this technological innovation because nuclear magnetic resonance, 641 00:36:52,680 --> 00:36:58,560 Speaker 1: the technology behind m ri I superconductivity UM molecular analysis, 642 00:36:59,080 --> 00:37:04,440 Speaker 1: uses helium two super cool magnets to turn them into superconductors, right, 643 00:37:04,960 --> 00:37:06,920 Speaker 1: so you need helium for that. So all these industries 644 00:37:06,920 --> 00:37:09,280 Speaker 1: were using this helium from the Beer of land management 645 00:37:09,280 --> 00:37:12,880 Speaker 1: to like advanced technology by leaps and bounds, which is 646 00:37:12,920 --> 00:37:15,840 Speaker 1: one of the big reasons why we are where we 647 00:37:15,880 --> 00:37:20,000 Speaker 1: are right now technologically speaking because of helium. But now 648 00:37:20,040 --> 00:37:24,320 Speaker 1: we're starting to run out. There's I think nine billion 649 00:37:24,440 --> 00:37:27,360 Speaker 1: cubic feet of helium left in the reserve in Texas, 650 00:37:27,440 --> 00:37:29,759 Speaker 1: which is about a third of what they had when 651 00:37:29,760 --> 00:37:32,399 Speaker 1: they started selling it off in the nineties, which would 652 00:37:32,440 --> 00:37:34,760 Speaker 1: be fine if we just clamped it out and said, okay, 653 00:37:34,760 --> 00:37:37,480 Speaker 1: this is a reserve again. But instead, for some reason, 654 00:37:37,480 --> 00:37:40,680 Speaker 1: the government just doubled down and issued another decree to 655 00:37:40,719 --> 00:37:43,680 Speaker 1: the beer of land management is like, keep selling this stuff. 656 00:37:43,760 --> 00:37:45,520 Speaker 1: Let's just get rid of all of it for no 657 00:37:45,560 --> 00:37:49,479 Speaker 1: good reason. I don't understand why. Like it made sense 658 00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:51,960 Speaker 1: in the nineties maybe, and it had all these great effects, 659 00:37:52,040 --> 00:37:54,759 Speaker 1: but now it's like, okay, we understand that helium is 660 00:37:55,600 --> 00:37:59,000 Speaker 1: literally irreplaceable, as the article put it, like there's once 661 00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:00,960 Speaker 1: there's no helium. There's no helium, Like we can't go 662 00:38:01,040 --> 00:38:03,640 Speaker 1: get it anywhere else for manufacturer, and we have no 663 00:38:03,719 --> 00:38:07,080 Speaker 1: technology to recycle it. I wonder what the reason is. 664 00:38:07,600 --> 00:38:11,000 Speaker 1: I guess money private industry has a lot of interest 665 00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:13,799 Speaker 1: in it, and there's good interest too, like using it 666 00:38:13,840 --> 00:38:17,839 Speaker 1: for m R S or pharmaceutical researcher that kind of parties. Well, 667 00:38:17,840 --> 00:38:21,000 Speaker 1: that's the thing. So med, the med and pharma sectors 668 00:38:21,040 --> 00:38:25,840 Speaker 1: use tent of helium worldwide welding used. The seventeen percent 669 00:38:25,840 --> 00:38:30,000 Speaker 1: because they use helium to weld party balloons equals eight 670 00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:33,360 Speaker 1: percent of worldwide helium use. I have a feeling that 671 00:38:33,400 --> 00:38:34,840 Speaker 1: party balloons are going to go the way of the 672 00:38:34,840 --> 00:38:38,080 Speaker 1: dinosaur very soon, if they haven't already. And half of 673 00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:41,960 Speaker 1: that is the stoner kid who operates the helium tank, right, 674 00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:45,640 Speaker 1: just talking funny. Yeah, So that's the helium shortage. That's 675 00:38:45,719 --> 00:38:48,760 Speaker 1: the skinny on it. So that I wonder if there's 676 00:38:48,920 --> 00:38:53,520 Speaker 1: any other gas they could use for blimps. I don't know. 677 00:38:53,920 --> 00:38:56,759 Speaker 1: It seems like a giant waste. Or I wonder if 678 00:38:56,800 --> 00:39:00,319 Speaker 1: they could, Like, do you like a hybrid so it's 679 00:39:00,360 --> 00:39:05,240 Speaker 1: fueled by hot air like a balloon? Huh? Probably wouldn't. 680 00:39:05,280 --> 00:39:08,400 Speaker 1: I don't know. Yeah, I don't know either. Uh. Well, 681 00:39:08,440 --> 00:39:11,760 Speaker 1: I guess we are at the future then in the future, 682 00:39:12,640 --> 00:39:18,279 Speaker 1: and depending on who you ask, the future of airships 683 00:39:18,600 --> 00:39:21,399 Speaker 1: is either super exciting and awesome and when you look 684 00:39:21,400 --> 00:39:24,600 Speaker 1: at these they are or it's not going to be 685 00:39:24,640 --> 00:39:27,520 Speaker 1: funded enough to really Um, there's not a lot of 686 00:39:27,520 --> 00:39:29,799 Speaker 1: money being pumped into it. Well, the government was for 687 00:39:29,800 --> 00:39:34,560 Speaker 1: a little while with the Afghanistan war. The Department of 688 00:39:34,560 --> 00:39:36,719 Speaker 1: Defense was like, give us new blimps. We want these 689 00:39:36,719 --> 00:39:39,560 Speaker 1: things now. And all these companies ran in and we're like, 690 00:39:39,600 --> 00:39:42,120 Speaker 1: here's your blimps, here's your blimps, give us some money. 691 00:39:42,600 --> 00:39:45,040 Speaker 1: The problem is is the whole program got scrapped because 692 00:39:45,120 --> 00:39:48,360 Speaker 1: nobody could fulfill the enormous orders. The d D was 693 00:39:48,360 --> 00:39:52,520 Speaker 1: placing four helium Well that makes sense. Uh. And the 694 00:39:52,560 --> 00:39:57,640 Speaker 1: military is interested because they basically, um could be uh 695 00:39:57,800 --> 00:40:02,279 Speaker 1: a satellite function as a satellite like a ten ft satellite. Yeah, 696 00:40:02,320 --> 00:40:05,640 Speaker 1: pretty much. Um. There are people doing it though. Lockheed 697 00:40:05,680 --> 00:40:08,719 Speaker 1: Martin has a P seven ninety one UM that is 698 00:40:08,760 --> 00:40:12,120 Speaker 1: super cool looking. It is a try hall. If you 699 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:13,759 Speaker 1: look at it from the front, it looks sort of 700 00:40:13,800 --> 00:40:18,239 Speaker 1: like three blimps squashed together. Um. And it has four 701 00:40:18,360 --> 00:40:21,840 Speaker 1: big it looks like feet these disc shaped cushions that 702 00:40:21,960 --> 00:40:26,439 Speaker 1: apparently for landing and these are also cool. There's um 703 00:40:26,480 --> 00:40:31,240 Speaker 1: another one in California from Worldwide Aeroscorp. Called the dragon 704 00:40:31,320 --> 00:40:33,680 Speaker 1: Dream and it's different look and it sort of looks 705 00:40:33,719 --> 00:40:35,880 Speaker 1: like a whale shark. Did you see it. It's a 706 00:40:35,920 --> 00:40:37,719 Speaker 1: single hall, I guess, but it's sort of kind of 707 00:40:37,719 --> 00:40:40,840 Speaker 1: flattened out. Um, yeah, it looks like a whale shark. 708 00:40:41,040 --> 00:40:43,360 Speaker 1: They they actually submitted that design to the d o 709 00:40:43,440 --> 00:40:46,880 Speaker 1: D and when the d D scrapped the program. Um, 710 00:40:47,000 --> 00:40:49,239 Speaker 1: they bought their design back because they want to go 711 00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:52,640 Speaker 1: commercial like cargo carrier with it. Yeah. Well they're in 712 00:40:52,640 --> 00:40:56,920 Speaker 1: trouble though, because the dragon died well, it had a 713 00:40:57,000 --> 00:40:59,160 Speaker 1: roof collapse and a hangarya and they don't know if 714 00:40:59,200 --> 00:41:02,160 Speaker 1: they have the money to even fix it and then continue. Well, 715 00:41:02,200 --> 00:41:05,040 Speaker 1: they have another model called the mL eight sixties six 716 00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:08,040 Speaker 1: that it sounds like they're putting their energy into. It's 717 00:41:08,080 --> 00:41:12,239 Speaker 1: supposedly can carry two and fifty tons, which is more 718 00:41:12,280 --> 00:41:17,640 Speaker 1: than twice the cargo payload of a cargo seven seventy twice. 719 00:41:17,760 --> 00:41:20,719 Speaker 1: And again you mentioned how little fuel it takes to 720 00:41:21,000 --> 00:41:23,600 Speaker 1: power these things. So it'll take a little while for 721 00:41:23,640 --> 00:41:26,439 Speaker 1: you to get your package, but the company shipping it 722 00:41:26,480 --> 00:41:28,799 Speaker 1: isn't going to spend too much money delivering it. I 723 00:41:28,800 --> 00:41:31,440 Speaker 1: still say, if it's a military like to use as 724 00:41:31,440 --> 00:41:35,000 Speaker 1: a cargo plane. I know you can't shoot a hole 725 00:41:35,000 --> 00:41:37,120 Speaker 1: in it, but what if you launched the surface to 726 00:41:37,120 --> 00:41:40,160 Speaker 1: air missile at it. You know it's still full of helium. 727 00:41:40,200 --> 00:41:43,359 Speaker 1: That's doesn't sound like I don't know. They're so high 728 00:41:43,440 --> 00:41:46,120 Speaker 1: up there you can't the fact that we have satellites 729 00:41:46,160 --> 00:41:50,879 Speaker 1: and drones. It seems to me like the surveillance uses 730 00:41:50,920 --> 00:41:54,480 Speaker 1: of blimps or preposterous, especially considering that we could be 731 00:41:54,600 --> 00:42:00,000 Speaker 1: using that helium for medical purposes instead. You know, I agree, 732 00:42:00,560 --> 00:42:03,439 Speaker 1: you got anything else on blimps? We got nothing else. Um, 733 00:42:03,480 --> 00:42:05,759 Speaker 1: I got one other thing. If you were fascinated by 734 00:42:05,880 --> 00:42:10,080 Speaker 1: the um the way blimps float, I think it's cool 735 00:42:10,120 --> 00:42:15,879 Speaker 1: for some reason. I did a brain stuff video about that. 736 00:42:16,280 --> 00:42:19,000 Speaker 1: You can calculate how many balloons it would take, like 737 00:42:19,080 --> 00:42:22,759 Speaker 1: regular party balloons to lift yourself into the sky, and 738 00:42:22,800 --> 00:42:24,920 Speaker 1: I made a video about it. So you go to 739 00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:28,880 Speaker 1: a brain stuff show dot com and check it out. Uh, 740 00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:30,799 Speaker 1: And if you want to read this article, you can 741 00:42:30,840 --> 00:42:33,680 Speaker 1: go to how stuff works dot com type in how 742 00:42:33,719 --> 00:42:36,440 Speaker 1: blimps work and it will bring it up. And I said, 743 00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:39,920 Speaker 1: how stuff works. I think So that means it's time 744 00:42:39,920 --> 00:42:45,280 Speaker 1: for listener, ma'am. I'm gonna call this, uh, sterilizing addicts. 745 00:42:45,520 --> 00:42:48,840 Speaker 1: Remember that Old One did a show on whether or 746 00:42:48,840 --> 00:42:52,040 Speaker 1: not it's legal to sterilize addicts. It turns out it is, yeah, 747 00:42:52,080 --> 00:42:54,319 Speaker 1: and that's the thing. Uh. And this is from someone 748 00:42:54,320 --> 00:42:58,879 Speaker 1: who had a personal uh stake in it. Um. It's long, 749 00:42:58,960 --> 00:43:02,120 Speaker 1: but I'm gonna edit it in my head as I go. Hey, guys, 750 00:43:02,160 --> 00:43:05,040 Speaker 1: just recently listen to your podcasts and sterilation sterilization of 751 00:43:05,040 --> 00:43:09,799 Speaker 1: addicts had a personal story to share. Um. Until my 752 00:43:09,920 --> 00:43:13,640 Speaker 1: mother is a fully recovered heroin addict and I'm grateful 753 00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:15,799 Speaker 1: just to be alive. Until I was six, she was 754 00:43:15,840 --> 00:43:18,840 Speaker 1: only an alcoholic. However, a drug addiction set in fast. 755 00:43:18,920 --> 00:43:22,560 Speaker 1: My mother, brother, and myself, along with whatever scumbag boyfriend 756 00:43:22,600 --> 00:43:24,719 Speaker 1: she had at the time, were constantly on the run 757 00:43:24,760 --> 00:43:26,880 Speaker 1: from the police, looking for shelter and searching for food. 758 00:43:27,520 --> 00:43:29,800 Speaker 1: My father is an upper middle class blue collar worker 759 00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:32,560 Speaker 1: who always had a sound home environment. When my mother 760 00:43:32,560 --> 00:43:33,880 Speaker 1: was sent to prison when I was ten, I was 761 00:43:33,880 --> 00:43:36,320 Speaker 1: sent to live with my father. Always had food, a shower, 762 00:43:36,320 --> 00:43:39,400 Speaker 1: and clean clothes. Was never in fear for being homeless. Uh. 763 00:43:39,400 --> 00:43:41,040 Speaker 1: I live with my father for three years until I 764 00:43:41,080 --> 00:43:43,839 Speaker 1: finally ran away. Once I regained contact with my mother. 765 00:43:44,200 --> 00:43:47,759 Speaker 1: My father, even with his financial support, instability was never there, 766 00:43:47,840 --> 00:43:50,640 Speaker 1: even though he was only a few feet away. My mother, 767 00:43:50,719 --> 00:43:54,160 Speaker 1: even while on drugs, always listened and always cared about 768 00:43:54,200 --> 00:43:57,120 Speaker 1: my thoughts and feelings, and that was what was important 769 00:43:57,160 --> 00:44:00,640 Speaker 1: as a child. My mother eventually overcame her adictions cold 770 00:44:00,640 --> 00:44:03,880 Speaker 1: Turkey because she could see it was damaging to me 771 00:44:03,920 --> 00:44:06,520 Speaker 1: and my brother. And she's been cleaned for eleven years 772 00:44:06,560 --> 00:44:09,759 Speaker 1: now and it's an amazing mother, an amazing grandmother to 773 00:44:09,800 --> 00:44:12,479 Speaker 1: my nephew. I like to believe that seeing the harder 774 00:44:12,480 --> 00:44:15,520 Speaker 1: side of life made me appreciate, uh, such things and 775 00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:18,520 Speaker 1: be more humble and responsible, uh and fearful of what 776 00:44:18,560 --> 00:44:20,279 Speaker 1: could happen if I slipped or did not take care 777 00:44:20,320 --> 00:44:23,360 Speaker 1: of myself. I don't want to be the poster child 778 00:44:23,400 --> 00:44:26,360 Speaker 1: for children of addicts. Whoever, I do believe that we 779 00:44:26,400 --> 00:44:30,160 Speaker 1: are all in control of our own lives. Uh. And 780 00:44:30,280 --> 00:44:37,200 Speaker 1: that is anonymized as Cornelius Jacobs, the seventh Corney Jake seven. Yeah, 781 00:44:37,360 --> 00:44:38,640 Speaker 1: he said, yeah, you can read it. And I said, 782 00:44:38,640 --> 00:44:42,120 Speaker 1: all anonymous anonymous size it is there some sort of 783 00:44:42,200 --> 00:44:45,920 Speaker 1: name anonymizer on the internet. Now? He said, please do 784 00:44:46,080 --> 00:44:48,800 Speaker 1: just make it something awesome, like Cornelius Jacobs the seventh, 785 00:44:49,120 --> 00:44:52,400 Speaker 1: that's great and that's a cool ps. I've been secretly 786 00:44:52,440 --> 00:44:55,760 Speaker 1: wanting Jerry to be the Tyler Dirden of your podcast. 787 00:44:56,000 --> 00:44:59,120 Speaker 1: That even means like made up, but like we think 788 00:44:59,160 --> 00:45:02,640 Speaker 1: she's real, but she's not. Okay, are you real, Jerry? 789 00:45:03,200 --> 00:45:07,040 Speaker 1: Jerry says no, Nope, that answers that. Cornelius Jacobs the 790 00:45:07,160 --> 00:45:10,520 Speaker 1: seventh and you read the Roman numerals correctly. Chuck this time? 791 00:45:10,520 --> 00:45:15,960 Speaker 1: Good going? I I yeah. Uh. If you want to 792 00:45:15,960 --> 00:45:18,120 Speaker 1: get in touch with me and Chuck to tell us 793 00:45:18,160 --> 00:45:21,960 Speaker 1: any story like Cornelius Jacobs the seventh, um, please do. 794 00:45:22,080 --> 00:45:24,839 Speaker 1: You can tweet to us at s y s K podcast. 795 00:45:25,280 --> 00:45:27,400 Speaker 1: You can join us on Facebook dot com, slash stuff 796 00:45:27,400 --> 00:45:29,400 Speaker 1: you Should Know. You can send us an email to 797 00:45:29,520 --> 00:45:32,320 Speaker 1: Stuff Podcast at how stuff Works dot com, and as always, 798 00:45:32,360 --> 00:45:34,480 Speaker 1: go to our cool home on the web, Stuff you 799 00:45:34,480 --> 00:45:41,920 Speaker 1: Should Know dot com for more on this and thousands 800 00:45:41,960 --> 00:45:52,080 Speaker 1: of other topics. Is it how stuff Works dot com