Balloon Ascension Day Jan 9, 2024

Balloon Ascension Day

Up, up, and away! Today is Balloon Ascension Day, celebrating the anniversary of the first manned balloon flight in North America. French aeronaut Jean-Pierre Blanchard"s flight took him from Philadelphia to Deptford, New Jersey, back in 1793. Interest in ballooning took off from there and today, hot air balloon festivals take place across the country, including Albuquerque, where today"s sunrise image was taken. Every year, hundreds of thousands of people attend the nine-day Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta—the largest hot air balloon festival in the world—to see skilled pilots expertly maneuver their baskets through balloon-filled skies.

© Jennifer MacCornack/Shutterstock

palette

Today in History

Jan 9, 2018Great Fountain Geyser, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Jan 9, 2019What, no escalator?
Jan 9, 2020Into the woods
Jan 9, 2021The stylish Spanish shawl
Jan 9, 2022Rice processing in Bangladesh
Jan 9, 2023Wind Cave National Park celebrates 120 years
Jan 9, 2025Remembering Jimmy Carter

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 3, 2019Love on ice
Jun 10, 2019Ponta da Piedade rock formations in Portugal
Nov 21, 20222022 FIFA World Cup
Apr 22, 2019Meet our fuzzy Earth Day mascot
Jan 12, 2023Rumelihisarı in Istanbul, Türkiye
Dec 16, 2023Guild houses of Grand-Place, Brussels, Belgium
Dec 25, 2019Merry and bright
Nov 5, 2023Playa del Silencio, Spain
Dec 8, 2019Mod gear
Jul 5, 2025Tour de France begins
Feb 16, 2019It’s not a pinecone, it’s a pangolin
Apr 3, 2024Find a Rainbow Day
Dec 4, 2018A viewer with a view
Jan 7, 2021Of balloons and lost pantaloons
Jul 4, 2024Independence Day
Jun 20, 2018Today is World Refugee Day
Jun 20, 2019In celebration of America’s national bird
Jun 16, 2018Drop in on International Surfing Day
Dec 19, 2023Castle Square, Old Town, Warsaw, Poland
Oct 19, 2021These laurels are hardy
Jun 17, 2023International Surfing Day
Nov 13, 2018Autumn’s swan song
Aug 29, 2024Castellfollit de la Roca, Catalonia, Spain
Apr 20, 2024National Park Week begins
May 18, 2022International Museum Day
Oct 11, 2022Tortula moss, Netherlands
Dec 26, 2022Boxing Day in East Yorkshire, England
May 1, 2025Lei Day in Hawaii
Jan 3, 2021An Alpine fairy-tale castle
Oct 23, 2022Mute swan