What would happen if you released a Helium Balloon in space?

Answer 1

it would implode?

Answer 2

What is the balloon made of? It would not take much helium to fill a balloon when the balloon is in a vacuum. The balloon has mass, more mass than the helium. Chances are the balloon would remain in orbit until it succumbed to the gravitation pull of the nearest planet, sub planet, moon, or star, or it would be blown away by the solar winds; all depending on where it was released. A regular balloon has spaces between the molecules of rubber that allow helium to diffuse through the balloon. Eventually, the balloon would be an empty bladder in space.

Answer 3

The answer is it will expolde since there is not air pressure the ballon will want to expand and will reach the breaking point of the rubber it is made of.

I think the real question you had though is what would happen if you relieased the ballon in space and it didn't burst. Since it floats up when we let go of it on Earth what will happen when it is already up? It will fall.
The reason a helium ballon floats when we let go of it is the helium it lighter then the air in our atmosphere so it tries to float up on top of the air. Much like letting a cork go in water. The cork wants to float to the top of the water.
In space the ballon would now weight more then the surrounding "nothingness" so it would sink tward the neast source of gravity. If the nearest source of gravity was the Earth it would then sink until it floated on top of the atmosphere. Well it's a nice visual at least. In reality if the ballon started to fall towards Earth if would pick up so much speed it would burst when it hit the atmosphere. Now if there was no close source of gravity it might get picked up by the solar wind and blow away from the sun.

Answer 4

As far as buoyancy and motion, without the air around it, the helium baloon would behave like any other object. It would be in orbit along with you --- but not for long.

It would pop almost immediately. On Earth, the atmospheric pressure is about 14 psi. To inflate a ballon, you must have a pressure slightly above this, around 0.2 psi. The pressure inside the balloon is then 14.2 psi and outside is 14 psi. The balloon's skin stretches until it generates enough force to contain that extra 0.2 psi. In space, there is no atmospheric pressure, so the full 14.2 psi would be applied to the balloon's skin. The skin simply cannot contain 29 times the normal pressure. The ballon would rapidly expand just like it were being instantaneously overinflated and then pop.

Answer 5

Tricky question since two things happen simultaneously:
1)
The relative pressures will make the Helium expand (as explained by the others above).

2)
Expanding gas cools down rapidly AND temperature in space are close to absolute zero (2.7Kelvin or -271C). Helium will become liquid at -272C

So depending on if the ballon is exposed to the sun (heating up the ballon) or not it MIGHT also liquify the helium

My bet is on no1 though.

Answer 6

If you released a Helium Balloon in space the zero air pressure would cause it to expand and pop.

This is similar to our atmosphere. Once balloons get so far up, they expand due to the equation PV=nRT.

Since pressure decreases, Volume increases and it pops.

In space, there is no pressure, so the volume would immediately increase and the balloon would pop.

Answer 7

Since there's no air pressure around the balloon, the helium inside would continue to expand as if there was nothing there to stop it and the balloon would explode.

Learned that one from chemistry class. =)

Answer 8

it would remain where you leave it as there is no gases in the open space for it to go above (or below). Even if there were, they would not be at one single place wich gives a twist to the answer. The balloon would burst as if has a huge more am of cancentration of gas than its outside (the ratio's infinite)

Answer 9

My guess is that it would explode. The pressure in the balloon would be much greater than the pressure in space (which is pretty much a vaccum), and balloons (at least, the type one gets at the local party store) aren't very strong.

Answer 10

it would expand (it's in a vacuum, after all) and either break or just expand until the pressure inside equalled the restraining (elastic) force of the balloon

it would travel in whatever orbit it was placed in - just as a thousand-ton chunk of steel would

it probably wouldn't survive a re-entry very well, and raw space sunlight would damage it depending on what the balloon material was

if you left the end open, it would fly around but you wouldn't hear "pppffffffffffffffftttttttttttt"

Answer 11

if you let the helium out, it would propel forward forever, because there wouldn't be any friction to stop it in space (or else it would collide with something and be destroyed). This is kinda how rockets work in space.....the thrust of the rocket pushes off of the exhaust of the rocket, propelling it forward.... this makes the rocket move at a constant speed, because there is nothing to slow it down.