Balloon Ascension Day 9 Jan 2024

Balloon Ascension Day

Is your head in the clouds? It"s time to keep it there! Today is Balloon Ascension Day, an event dedicated to honouring the achievements of Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a French aeronaut and innovator who accomplished the first manned balloon voyage in America, from Philadelphia to Deptford, New Jersey, back in 1793. Since 2011, this day has been celebrated annually to pay tribute to this midair milestone. In today"s image, the sun sets over the Rio Grande and casts a light on the colourful hot air balloons above Albuquerque, New Mexico. Every year, people gather from all over the globe for the nine-day-long Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta—the largest hot air balloon festival in the world—to see skilled pilots expertly manoeuvre their baskets.

© Jennifer MacCornack/Shutterstock

palette

Today in History

Castle in the sky
9 Jan 2025Sossusvlei sand dunes, Namib desert, Namibia

More Desktop Wallpapers:

1 Oct 2025Welcome to Black History Month
27 Apr 2024Leucistic Annas hummingbird, UCSC Arboretum, California, USA
14 Dec 2024Christmas Bird Count turns 125
26 Feb 2025Castle Stalker, Argyll, Scotland
31 Jul 2025Kalalau Beach on the Nā Pali Coast, Kauai, Hawaii, United States
A rock giant
8 Nov 2023Llyn Padarn, Snowdonia, Wales
Regal Radiance
7 Jul 2024Rice terraces of Mù Cang Chải, Yên Bái province, Vietnam
23 Jan 2024Maldives
4 Jan 2025Bản Giốc – Detian Falls, Vietnam
3 Mar 2025World Wildlife Day
28 Sep 2024Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India
3 Jul 2025Rainbow River, Rainbow Springs State Park, Florida, United States
1 May 2024Lei Day
Sunset on the Valley of the Moon
7 May 2025Dunluce Castle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
Pretty in pink
Incan ingenuity
8 May 2024Marseille welcomes to Olympic torch
From victory to festivity
12 Oct 2024World Migratory Bird Day
More of a moustache than a beard?
6 Apr 2024Japan Castle Day
31 Mar 2024Happy Easter!
All is calm
When only a hug will do
So close, yet so far
4 Dec 2023International Cheetah Day
Kings of the north