Why balloons only fly at dawn and dusk
Not tradition, and not for the photographs. It is about what the air is doing.
5 September 2026
A balloon has no steering. It goes where the air goes, which is fine when the air is behaving and dangerous when it is not. Just after sunrise the ground has been cooling all night, the air above it is stable, and the wind at the surface is at its lightest of the day. By mid-morning the sun has warmed the ground, thermals start rising, and the air becomes lumpy enough to make an approach unpredictable. It settles again in the last hour before sunset. That is the whole reason for the unsociable hours.
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Kit for balloon spotting
- Compact binoculars 8x42 is plenty, and light enough to hold steady at arm's length. via Amazon
- A flask that actually keeps things hot Dawn in a field in August is colder than the forecast suggests. via Amazon
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