Mastodawn

Is it time to ban balloon releases, or indeed balloons altogether?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/apr/02/the-dark-side-of-the-balloon-boom-is-it-time-they-were-banned

I'd say yes, not just for the rubbish they scatter over the countryside but also because as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has recently hopefully demonstrated, helium is a finite resource with important medical and scientific applications

The dark side of the balloon boom – is it time they were banned?

From balloon arches at parties to mass balloon releases at funerals, these bits of floating rubber and plastic can have disastrous effects on wildlife. As some retailers are refusing to sell them, here are some alternatives

The Guardian

Show thread

Sulfide_Sleuth 3d ago

@afewbugs
@KimSJ

The garbage is a mad issue to be sure, but please be aware that helium in MRI is not the same helium we use in balloons. He has 2 isotopes (He3 and He4). He3 was only formed in the initial stages of our solar system so is exceedingly rare, unless you are in the core pf our and/or somewhere where solar eind can accumulate (ie moon). In face we geochemists use the He3/4 ratios to figure out of something might have come from deep within the earth's interior.

He4 is the second most abundant element in the universe. Balloons use He4, MRIs use He3.

Show thread

Aura Everitt

@PhilGopon @afewbugs @KimSJ this is also true of uses in quantum computing, which is usually because a helium dilution cryostat is being used. The dilution stage uses both helium 3 and 4, but with a much higher proportion of 3 than occurs naturally.