Autorentext

Henri Lachambre (1846-1904) and Alexis Machuron (1854-1901) were French ballooning pioneers whose contributions to the development of aeronautics in the late 19th century were crucial to the progress of both scientific exploration and public fascination with flight. Though not widely known outside the field of early aviation, their work-particularly the construction and launch of the balloon used in S. A. Andrée's ill-fated Arctic expedition-stands as a testament to the ambition and ingenuity of an era obsessed with conquering the skies. One of their most significant undertakings was the construction of the hydrogen balloon Örnen (The Eagle), commissioned by the Swedish engineer Salomon August Andrée for his 1897 North Pole expedition. Built in Lachambre's Parisian workshop with Machuron overseeing several technical aspects of the balloon's mechanics and envelope design, the project represented the ambitious spirit of the time. Lachambre and Machuron were not only builders; they personally accompanied Andrée to Svalbard, Norway, to supervise the final preparations and inflation of the balloon, ensuring that all procedures were correctly executed. Though the expedition ended in tragedy, with the deaths of Andrée and his companions, the balloon itself was a remarkable technical achievement. It was designed to remain aloft for an extended period and included innovations such as a drag-rope steering system and a carefully sealed gas envelope. Their work demonstrated the increasing sophistication of balloon technology at the end of the 19th century and marked an important step toward more systematic and scientific approaches to aviation.