Gas Balloon over Paris to indicate pollution levels

If you want to know how clean or filthy the air over Paris is, then very soon all you will need to do is look yonder to the Helium filled balloon that will indicate the pollution levels. Aérophile has announced the launch of AERO30NG Aérophile 5500 model, which is located in the Parc Andre Citroën in Paris. This balloon is filled with 6,000 cubic meters of helium and will serve as a tourist attraction as well as green-consciousness. Several sensors set up by Airparif, an organization that measures air quality in France, will collect air pollution data from all over the city. After computing the data, the Aérophile balloon will display two measurements: ambient air quality and air pollution produced by auto emissions, which is measured at major traffic junctions. The balloon’s color indicates the ambient air quality using three projectors that are located in the middle of the balloon. Red signifies highly polluted air, orange for polluted, yellow for moderate, light green for clean, and green for very clean.

To display traffic pollution, a high-powered rotating laser at the base sweeps across the lower half of the balloon. Both pollution displays will be visible day and night. Airparif will be recording the data on its Web site, along with that of 30 other European cities. Tourists will be able to take a ride on the balloon; 30 passengers at a time.
Apparently the balloon is tethered to the ground with a movable cable controlled by a hydroelectric winch; an environmentally friendly design based on the Archimedes principle.
As Aérophile describes on its Web site, “Flight aboard a tethered gas balloon AERO30NG is a unique experience full of sensations for the passengers. Silent and without vibration, the gondola is open to the air, allowing passengers to experience the sensation of being on a flying balcony 150 m in the sky. A 360° panorama unfolds before them, and in a single gaze they can take in the whole landscape.”
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