A DARING PROJECT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 9823, 18 May 1895, Page 2 (Supplement)

A DARING PROJECT.

BY BALLOON TO THE NORTH POLE.

A SWEDISH EXPEDITION.

The distinguished Swedish civil engineer and scientific aeronaut, Mr. S. A. Andree, will start next year on a balloon journey to the North Pole, under the auspices of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science and •with the financial support of a number of Swedish gentlemen. Chimerical as such an undertaking seems to be, its projectors believe it will be a success, with most important results. .In a lecture before the Royal Swedish Academy recently Mr. Andree outlined his plans. He declared that the science of balloon construction and of steering a balloon during the last four years has advanced so far us almost to sol\o the practicability of aerial navigation. His plan is to establish headquarters at the .Norwegian Islands oil the north-west coast of Spitzbergen. Here a house or shed of sufficient size to cover a balloon of 22 metres, or 72*0 feet, in diameter when filled with gas, will be erected, and from this point the balloon journey to the North Pole will commence. The greatest expert in the world on balloon construction and aerial voyages, the celebrated balloon manufacturer, the late L. Gabriel Yon, of Paris, in a letter to Mr. Andree endorsed the plan as entirely practicable, and advised him to use a balloon of 22 meters in diameter, to be constructed of two-fold silk covers, and said that a balloon of this size and construction would float for thirty days without refilling. As an endorsement of M. Yon's statement, Henri Gilford, Poisenilles, and Graham, who are well-known aeronauts, computed that tho balloon would lose comparatively a small amount of gas in a month. The gas used for balloons is now manufactured and for sale, and can be transported any distance in cylinders; 1700 to 1800 cylinders are sufficient to fill a Polar balloon such as Mr. Andree will use, and can without any difficulty be transported to Spitzbergen. As ib might be somewhat dangerous to fill a balloon in the cpen air, Air. Andree will erect a portable shed to cover the balloon when being filled. The balloon under construction will be of such carrying power as to support a large, strongly-built gondola. Tho gondola will contain a dark room for photographic purposes, a sleeping room for three persons, and will be provided with a stem of sails for steering. The gondola will be suspended from the balloon in such a way that, in case of disaster, ib can be instantly detached. An interesting feature of the projected trip is that the balloon will not rise higher over the earth on an average than 825 feet. This will be accomplished by means of draglines, constructed of cocoa fibre, thus permitting them to float on water. The balloon can, therefore, be kept at the same distance from the earth in passing either over ice or water. The balloon will also be provided with a great number of free hanging ballast lines. The object of these is that in case the balloon, from some cause or other, suddenly sinks to a great depth as soon as the ballast line touches the ground the balloon will be relieved of a corresponding weight, and the sinking will stop before the gondola touches tho ground. The journey, as now planned, will be in a direct line from Spitzbergen over the North Pole to Behring Sound, a distance of about 2294 miles, and will not, it is expected, occupy more than six days, which is a fifth part of the time the balloon can float without refilling. Geographical and meteorological observations en route will be made by a competent scientist. Photographs will be taken of the country as the balloon floats forward, and these will be taken in double seta. One set ill be developed on board the balloon in case the travellers meet with accident and have to take to the gondola. The balloon will also be provided with Davy's safety lamps, and an electric storage battery for cooking, etc. In the Polar regions during the month of July tho sun, both by night and day, is above the horizon, so that the Arctic regions are peculiarly fitted for along aerial voyage. The loweeb temperature at Spitzbergen in July, 1883, was a few degrees above the aero point. Another advantage of ballooning in the Arctic regions is the absence of vegetation, i and thus the drag-lines will pass along evenly and without obstruction. Still another advantage is absence of electrical | etorms ; no record has ever been made of j lightning or thunder in this part of the globe. It has been suggested that a heavy snowfall would destroy the balloon, and this would certainly be a misfortune. Bub from records made in July at Spitzbergen this danger is not to be feared. Tho total cost of the expedition will be about £8000, and this amount has already j been subscribed. King Oscar of Sweden takes a great interest in the proposed balloon journey, and will no doubt mate- j rially aid Mr. Andree. Baron Nordenskjold, the famous Polar traveller and discoverer of the North-west Passage, has strongly recommended the expedition to the Royal Academy, and has stated the only practical way of reaching the North Pole is by means of a balloon. From his large experience of Polar and Arctic meteorological conditions, he is satisfied that Andree's plan will be successful. As the distance from Spitzbergen to the North Pole is only about 700 miles, with a south wind, the expedition should in a few hours see more of the Polar regions than would be discovered in several centuries by old methods of exploration. Dr. Nils Ekholm, probably the best informed meteorologist in Europe, and one of the members of the Swedish-Spitzen-bergen expedition in 1882-83, says that the wind currents are favourable during the summer months for a balloon voyage. The only danger he fears is that on reaching the North Pole, or the centre of the Polar regions, a perfect calm may be found to prevail; but experience has proved that such a centre is usually surrounded by wind-currents blowing outward. Mr. Andree has a European reputation as a scientific aerial traveller. He is not an enthusiast, but a practical, cool-headed man of science, who has made many experimental tests, besides many balloon journeys. In his balloon Svea last November he travelled from Gothenburg on the west coast of Sweden to tho island of Gotland, in the Baltic, a distance of over 245 English miles, covering the distance in five hours.