Hacking Airspace: The Insurgent Technology of Brazil's Hot Air Balloons, 1970-Present

The creation of unmanned, artistic hot air balloons in Brazil represents an insurgent technology-developed independently by technicians at the margins of society in conflict with formal technological systems. Brazil has a long tradition of launching hot air balloons at Catholic festivals. In the mid twentieth century, balloons became a secular art form beyond saints' days. As the secular practice grew, balloonists created increasingly larger aircraft, requiring complex technical expertise. By the 1970s and 1980s, teams were making technically and artistically elaborate balloons up to 105 meters high and carrying hundreds of kilos of fireworks, banners, or lanterns. Thanks to their soaring popularity, thousands of balloons were launched every year. They also posed a serious risk of fire and collision with other aircraft. Consequently, authorities criminalized their creators, the "baloeiros," under penalty of imprisonment.