1 year ago

It’s the exhilarating miracle of flight, celebrated every year with the latest in special equipment and state-of-the-art accouterments. For half a century, hot-air balloon pilots have been confronting, again and again, the limits of what their technology can’t do, while wildly enjoying what it can at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, a massive balloon festival in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

But while thrilling spectators, and offering their passengers the experience of a lifetime, the event also shows how one specific technology can evolve into a kind of culture, blending seamlessly into the day-to-day metropolitan life of America’s 32nd most-populous city. Flying Saucer-shaped balloon – Screenshot from live stream of Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta – clown special shapes Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022

The technology has always had its limits, and it’s a lesson that plays out at the Balloon Fiesta in real-time every year.