Helium Shortage Prompts Scientist's Balloon Use Warning

CommanderFrank

CommanderFrank

Cat Can't Scratch It
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Okay, now this is getting serious when scientists warn that filling party balloons with helium is contributing to an impending shortage…. in 30 to 50 years. Well gee, thanks for the last minute heads up. :D The future helium shortage could affect the super cooling MRI scanners all the way to the production of rocket fuel.

"We're not going to run out of helium tomorrow - but on the 30 to 50 year timescale we will have serious problems of having to shut things down if we don't do something in the meantime."
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Well, that's really easy to fix. We can just switch to hydrogen in balloons. What could possibly go wrong?
...
Hindenburg.gif

Just think of how much more fun kids can have at parties!
 
I think we should store our hydrogen in thermite-coated canisters.

What could possibly go wrong?
 
Umm.. I just read the article.. and they think that Helium baloons make it all the way into space.. ummmmmmmmmm

Regular ballons will pop once they get so high. I would imagine the metalicy ones would too.

Oh yeah.. and how many helium baloons have they found in space?
 
cyclone3d said:
Umm.. I just read the article.. and they think that Helium baloons make it all the way into space.. ummmmmmmmmm

Regular ballons will pop once they get so high. I would imagine the metalicy ones would too.

Oh yeah.. and how many helium baloons have they found in space?
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Apparently you've got a reading comprehension problem. The issue is that the helium floats away, not that the balloon itself does. Do you think the helium in the balloon just falls back to Earth once it pops?
 
Merc1138 said:
Apparently you've got a reading comprehension problem. The issue is that the helium floats away, not that the balloon itself does. Do you think the helium in the balloon just falls back to Earth once it pops?
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*snicker
 
SkribbelKat said:
Well, that's really easy to fix. We can just switch to hydrogen in balloons. What could possibly go wrong?
...
Hindenburg.gif

Just think of how much more fun kids can have at parties!
Click to expand...

I'd support mildly burning kids at their birthday parties to save our finite helium reserves.

I'd support mildly burning kids at their birthday parties just because it's funny.
 
Won't prices just rise naturally until it's too expensive to use for party balloons? I fail to see what the concern is about...
 
There is an over-abundance of helium in our solar system. We just need to perfect solar mining...
 
Helium is the 2nd most abundant element in the entire universe, yet we only have access to what happens to be stored in the earth's crust. What a sad predicament.

I've heard of this so-called shortage before. If it is a true threat, why don't the world governments mandate restrictions on helium for non-commercial use or other restrictions to stop the casual use we do now?

As much as helium filled balloons are apart of our celebrations and culture, I think the world can live without them. That alone will extend the duration of our supply.
 
Supermarkets are having problems finding enough helium to meet demand but have yet to raise prices to try and curb demand a bit. Most of the suppliers wont accept any new customers and usually cut some of our orders. We are trying to get customers to switch to air filled balloons instead. I myself think that balloons at parties are a complete waste of time, effort, money, and resources.
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
Helium is the 2nd most abundant element in the entire universe, yet we only have access to what happens to be stored in the earth's crust. What a sad predicament.

I've heard of this so-called shortage before. If it is a true threat, why don't the world governments mandate restrictions on helium for non-commercial use or other restrictions to stop the casual use we do now?

As much as helium filled balloons are apart of our celebrations and culture, I think the world can live without them. That alone will extend the duration of our supply.
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Dear conspiracy theorist,

Here's some fucking thinkage.

PS - you may want to take a class on organic chemistry.
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
Helium is the 2nd most abundant element in the entire universe, yet we only have access to what happens to be stored in the earth's crust. What a sad predicament.

I've heard of this so-called shortage before. If it is a true threat, why don't the world governments mandate restrictions on helium for non-commercial use or other restrictions to stop the casual use we do now?

As much as helium filled balloons are apart of our celebrations and culture, I think the world can live without them. That alone will extend the duration of our supply.
Click to expand...

A few of our suppliers have told me that Macy's takes up a huge amount of production for their parade. The cuurent shortage is due to production facilities undergoing "maintenance" and some pipeline being shutdown. I'm sure everyone gets a different story though.
 
Cool, as long as they save some for my exit bag I'm happy.

Well that sparked my curiosity on where it comes from.
 
BoogerBomb said:
A few of our suppliers have told me that Macy's takes up a huge amount of production for their parade. The cuurent shortage is due to production facilities undergoing "maintenance" and some pipeline being shutdown. I'm sure everyone gets a different story though.
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Drill baby drill! :D

I always thought the Macy's balloons were hot air?:confused:
 
I wonder if they try to reclaim the helium from the balloons or just waste it by releasing it into the atmosphere?
 
Merc1138 said:
Apparently you've got a reading comprehension problem. The issue is that the helium floats away, not that the balloon itself does. Do you think the helium in the balloon just falls back to Earth once it pops?
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Thanks for the coffee spot on my shirt.
 
Oh no's! My air swimmer remote controlled flying sharks days are numbered. Scientiest need to band together to create a synthetic form of helium before poor sharkie joins the extinct list.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Yes, everyone should take organic chemistry classes so they can post on news articles more effectively.
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You are the shining beacon of an example of why my sig has the quote that it does.
 
I think they are totally fucking stupid. There I said it.

The helium isn't going anywhere, it's not leaving the planet and we are using it in fusion. The natural supplies we have are going guess where...into open nature. It will eventually float up into the atmosphere anyway, it's been doing that for billions of years to start with.
 
Ticker305 said:
Scientiest need to band together to create a synthetic form of helium before poor sharkie joins the extinct list.
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Ugh,,,Helium is an element. Unless this fusion thing takes off helium will be hard to synthesize...:D
 
BBA said:
I think they are totally fucking stupid. There I said it.

The helium isn't going anywhere, it's not leaving the planet and we are using it in fusion. The natural supplies we have are going guess where...into open nature. It will eventually float up into the atmosphere anyway, it's been doing that for billions of years to start with.
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Are you familiar with the Meme "Wronger than wrong"?

look it up.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Intellectualism is being rude?
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No. Your response was celebrating ignorance due to sheer laziness. You used an incredibly hyperbolic excuse as a reason to not teach yourself a few things so that you could better understand the article. Wiki, motherfucker. Use it.
 
techrat said:
No. Your response was celebrating ignorance due to sheer laziness. You used an incredibly hyperbolic excuse as a reason to not teach yourself a few things so that you could better understand the article. Wiki, motherfucker. Use it.
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You're making some assumptions. I know why helium is in short supply, and I know how that works. I was just pointing out that the dude I was quoting was being dickish about someone being innocently ignorant on the subject.

We can still cuddle even though you're needlessly agro.
 
Gee, I leave this thread alone for a few hours so I can go outside to exercise and come back to find that it's turned into an angry argument. :( You people can start arguments over just about anything, huh?
 
cyclone3d said:
Umm.. I just read the article.. and they think that Helium baloons make it all the way into space.. ummmmmmmmmm

Regular ballons will pop once they get so high. I would imagine the metalicy ones would too.

Oh yeah.. and how many helium baloons have they found in space?
Click to expand...

Not sure if seriou.... oh screw it.
 
What is the problem with using regular old CO2?(You know, the stuff you blow out)

Don't helium balloons deflate quicker as well as the Helium effuses quicker? I think I learned something in Chemistry! :D
 
BBA said:
I think they are totally fucking stupid. There I said it.

The helium isn't going anywhere, it's not leaving the planet and we are using it in fusion. The natural supplies we have are going guess where...into open nature. It will eventually float up into the atmosphere anyway, it's been doing that for billions of years to start with.
Click to expand...

It hasn't been intentionally extracted from the Earth in large quantities for those billions of years. And the fact you think that "they are totally fucking stupid" really puts things in perspective :p
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
I've heard of this so-called shortage before. If it is a true threat, why don't the world governments mandate restrictions on helium for non-commercial use or other restrictions to stop the casual use we do now?
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Get ready for the flaming about you being a liberal communist. Most people can't think beyond what will happen 5 minutes into the future, trying to get people to alter their behavior for something that is projected to happen in 50 years is not going to happen. Humanity is collectively too fucking stupid.
 
BBA said:
I think they are totally fucking stupid. There I said it.

The helium isn't going anywhere, it's not leaving the planet and we are using it in fusion. The natural supplies we have are going guess where...into open nature. It will eventually float up into the atmosphere anyway, it's been doing that for billions of years to start with.
Click to expand...

Its a good thing our resident scientist arrived to correct experts in the field by posting insightful comments on a computer hardware message board frequented mostly by college-aged nerds.
 
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