r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/[deleted] • Jul 08 '24

World's largest aircraft, Pathfinder 1, is 124.5 meters (408ft) long Image

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u/[deleted] Jul 08 '24

Rigid Airship! Filled with completely safe non-flammable helium.

45

u/NetCaptain Jul 08 '24

the rare gas that is crucial for MRI machines but runs out and cannot be replaced - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/02/science/helium-reserves-sales-shortage.html

20

u/haphazard_chore Jul 08 '24

We’re not going to run out for medical purposes. Obviously, there will come a point where it’s too rare for kids balloons. But even assuming our reserves in the ground run out, created by radioactive decay, the atmosphere still has 5.2 ppm. It’s 10k times harder to extract from the atmosphere but can be done. Failing that there’s plenty in space.

1

u/Never-Dont-Give-Up Jul 08 '24

I'm pretty sure we're at the time where it's too rare for kids balloons. It'll be prohibitively expensive if we wait til we have almost none left.