Espionage balloon
Encyclopedia
An espionage
balloon is a balloon
used for spying
.
Espionage balloons were a development of the observation balloon
s used even before the World War I
behind the front line
. Unlike observation balloons, espionage balloons were neither manned nor moored to the ground; they were designed to fly deep into hostile territories, where they would record intelligence data and transmit them back to the home base. As such, espionage balloons could only be operated successfully when the weather forecast and the wind direction were favorable. They were more economical (and indeed dispensable, often falling victim to air defense) than manned reconnaissance aircraft
, as they did not put flying personnel into harm's way. They were usually hot air balloon
s.
Moreover, during the Cold War
, espionage balloons launched by the "Free world
" also had a secondary psychological warfare
capability, carrying propaganda
pamphlets and consumer goods (which were supposedly not freely available inside Communist states) that would be released or otherwise delivered onto enemy territories.
The advent of spy satellite
s, coupled with the end of the Cold War, have rendered espionage balloons obsolete.
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
balloon is a balloon
Balloon
A balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
used for spying
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
.
Espionage balloons were a development of the observation balloon
Observation balloon
Observation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s used even before the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
behind the front line
Front line
A front line is the farthest-most forward position of an armed force's personnel and equipment - generally in respect of maritime or land forces. Forward Line of Own Troops , or Forward Edge of Battle Area are technical terms used by all branches of the armed services...
. Unlike observation balloons, espionage balloons were neither manned nor moored to the ground; they were designed to fly deep into hostile territories, where they would record intelligence data and transmit them back to the home base. As such, espionage balloons could only be operated successfully when the weather forecast and the wind direction were favorable. They were more economical (and indeed dispensable, often falling victim to air defense) than manned reconnaissance aircraft
Reconnaissance aircraft
A reconnaissance aircraft is a manned military aircraft designed, or adapted, to carry out aerial reconnaissance.-History:The majority of World War I aircraft were reconnaissance designs...
, as they did not put flying personnel into harm's way. They were usually hot air balloon
Hot air balloon
The hot air balloon is the oldest successful human-carrying flight technology. It is in a class of aircraft known as balloon aircraft. On November 21, 1783, in Paris, France, the first untethered manned flight was made by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d'Arlandes in a hot air...
s.
Moreover, during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, espionage balloons launched by the "Free world
Free World
The Free World is a Cold War-era term often used to describe states not under the rule of the Soviet Union, its Eastern European allies, China, Vietnam, Cuba, and other communist nations. The term often referred to states such as the United States, Canada, and Western European states such as the...
" also had a secondary psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
capability, carrying propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
pamphlets and consumer goods (which were supposedly not freely available inside Communist states) that would be released or otherwise delivered onto enemy territories.
The advent of spy satellite
Spy satellite
A spy satellite is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications....
s, coupled with the end of the Cold War, have rendered espionage balloons obsolete.
See also
- Balloon (aircraft)Balloon (aircraft)A balloon is a type of aircraft that remains aloft due to its buoyancy. A balloon travels by moving with the wind. It is distinct from an airship, which is a buoyant aircraft that can be propelled through the air in a controlled manner....
- Skyhook balloonSkyhook balloonSkyhook balloons were balloons developed by Otto C. Winzen and General Mills, Inc., and used by the United States Navy Office of Naval Research in the late 1940s and in the 1950s for atmospheric research, especially for constant-level meteorological observations at very high altitudes...
- Project Moby Dick
- Project MogulProject MogulProject Mogul was a top secret project by the US Army Air Forces involving microphones flown on high altitude balloons, whose primary purpose was long-distance detection of sound waves generated by Soviet atomic bomb tests. The project was carried out from 1947 until early 1949...
- Project Genetrix
External links
- Nighttime photography, a description of WW2 aerial reconnaissance photography by Harold Eugene EdgertonHarold Eugene EdgertonHarold Eugene "Doc" Edgerton was a professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology...