Hot Air Balloon Book: Build and Launch Kongming Lanterns, Solar Tetroons, and More

Hot Air Balloon Book: Build and Launch Kongming Lanterns, Solar Tetroons, and More — page 5
impossible One of the stories about Zhuge Liang tells how he invented the hot air balloon Zhuge Liang and his troops were occupying the town of Pingyang when his enemy Sima Yi sur rounded it and began a siege hoping to force the famous Zhuge Liang to surrender Sima Yi s troops had occupied the land all around the town and watched carefully for messengers leaving the town So there was no way for Zhuge Liang to send a signal to his allies for help Zhuge Liang noticed that the wind was blowing toward his allies so he asked for a special large lantern to be made with no hole in the top and a wax burner held in the bottom He painted a message onto the side of the lantern and carried it up to a tower on the town wall He lit the burner and released the lantern which floated away in the wind toward his allies Sima Yi s troops below could only watch as the lantern passed overhead carrying a message that asked for help Sure enough Zhuge Liang's allies saw the message rode to Pingyang and rescued Zhuge Liang and his troops Apart from this legend there is no historical evi dence that Zhuge Liang invented the hot air balloon One writer suggested that the Kongming lantern might have been invented by a Chinese lantern maker and then named after the famously clever Zhuge Liang perhaps because it looks a lot like the little square hat Zhuge Liang always used to wear Sadly even this explanation is unlikely as there are