Large Balloon

Tourism

Ski station and of relaxation (farm inn with 1 100 m, restaurant with 1 342 m, Hotel of the Vosgean Club to 1351 m). Since the top, equipped with a circular table of orientation, one sees (see panoramic below) in the foreground, in plain, Mulhouse, Basle, Freiburg-in-Brisgau, Colmar, then in second plan the Black Forest and the the Swiss Jura and French, and in background, by favorable conditions weather, a vast part of the chain of the the Alps, Austria and Liechtenstein with the Mont Blanc.

The top of the Large Balloon is accessible by three paths, approximately 15 minutes of walk starting from the Route of the Peaks.

In winter (in the presence of high pressures) and by inversion of temperature, the visibility is particularly good, as of 800 to 900 meters of altitude.

Weather and climatology

It is generally the coldest and windy point of Alsace with Hohneck (1 362 m). The lowest temperature was reached on February 10th, 1956 with -30,2°C, the highest on August 13rd, 2003 with 29°C (41°C 1 200 m lower, in plain). The difference in temperature with the plain, close to Mulhouse, evolves/moves around 7°C, until 10°C and more in summer.

The thickness of the snowy coat is generally higher than one meter in winter, usually 1,50 m with the top of 1 350 meters. Best snowing up, or cumulated height, is observed on March 7th, 2006, with 3,70 meters, the old remarkable heights, approximately 3 m, went back to 1969 and 1970.

See the chart of the masses of air with 850 HP (towards 1 500 meters of altitude) http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/1956/Rrea00219560210.gif illustrating the record of cold (recorded). http://www.wetterzentrale.de/archive/ra/2003/Rrea00220030813.gif illustrating the record of heat (recorded).

The observation of the conditions weather on site in real-time or regular update, by camera, can be done by one of these means:

Météocam of the relay Radio ham of the G.B (frequency 10.458 GHz, pol. H, BY 20 Watts omni, code DTMF 68, parabolic reception aerial at sight on the Large Balloon)
Météocam (webcam) of the Hotel of the Large Balloon - Vosgean Club. It is the senior, since 1998 (winter only, if not Cernay)

http://www.vmeteo.cjb.net/2003_755437/auteur/cam/camfile.jpg

Nb: One 3rd camera is in service since the beginning of 2006 pennies the aegis of the " Mixed trade-union Markstein-Large Ballon": http://www.lemarkstein.net/webcams.htm

Others

A monument with the blue Devils of the First World War, the valorous Alpine hunters, was set up in 1927 and was inaugurated by Raymond Poincaré. Dispossessed of its bronze statue by the invader in September 1940, it found the majesty that one knows in October 1960 today to him, thanks to the Bouret sculptor.

The top is equipped since 1997 with a Radar being used for the civil aviation, for the management of the air traffic to the approach of the international airports of Mulhouse and Strasbourg. Surrounded by a circular view-point, this building was drawn by Claude Vasconi. The center of the radome is precisely with the altitude of 1 435,5 meters and the table of orientation to 1 431 Mr. Since this point the theoretical limit of visibility is about 120 km in direction of the north of the plain of Alsace. On the side is, a relay radio ham is established on arrival of the ski lifts.

By error it is often called balloon of Guebwiller, but its other denomination is Ballon of Soultz or Sultzer Belchen since it is on the Western limit of the round of applause of Soultz. Moreover, in certain German communes, one finds a street of Balloon-of-Soultz. This error, geographical and historical is due to the fact that the town of Guebwiller is closer than that to Soultz, and was even confirmed by certain dictionaries and reference frames. But in the official documents, it is indeed the balloon of Soultz. Administrative curiosity, although belonging to the town of Soultz, the Large Balloon is managed jointly by the Communauté of communes of the area of Guebwiller and by the Communauté of communes of the Valley of Saint-Amarin

The radar is located on the round of applause of the commune of Goldbach, retained for the deposit of the license of contruire. Another characteristic, the zip code is that of the commune of the Willer-on-Thur.

Anthology

; See also: Panoramic vision, on the four solid masses, since the Turn of the View-point in Mulhouse. ; Remarks on the remote panoramic observations: The vision on the solid mass of Mont Blanc, located at 229 km, is especially possible between October and May and under the best conditions weather, little moisture. One discovers theoretically the upper part of the Mount Blanc, starting from an altitude is of approximately 3 500 meters (see panorama of the Alps above).

Account should indeed be held:

of the influence of the terrestrial Curve, marked here.
of the positioning of the obstacle, in the axis, compared to the 2 points extêmes.
of the altitude of the known as obstacle more penalizing (not inevitably highest), here oscillating around 1 270 m, are the mountain of the Right, but being able to reach 1 600 m with the Chasseral, are in the direction of the western part of the Alps of the Valais and the extreme is solid mass of Mont Blanc.

These three particular parameters cause to occult the base of the tops more or less, in what concerns us those not reaching the 4 100 meters of altitude approximately, under the conditions of release (observant side) least favorable.

More towards the east, the barrier of the Jura evolving/moving between 1 445 meters (Hasenmatt) and 1 300 m, then 1 200 m, and with the bringing together of subject (175 km), i.e. the Bernese Alps, the “vertical panorama” alpine improve, sometimes as of 2 000 m of altitude.

Among the visible tops debuis the top of the Large Balloon let us quote, in Were worth, the Weisshorn the Cervin, the White Dent and, in Bernese Oberland, the Finsteraarhorn, the Jungfrau, Mönch, Eiger…

Let us announce moreover that under certain conditions the observer can profit from the phenomenon of Réfraction bringing a panorama of discovery better than that calculated in a standard way and given to pure indicative title.

The radar: http://www.claude-vasconi.fr/projets/radar/radar.htm

Panoramic

The top of the Large Balloon is favourable with the observation of the the Bernese Alps and part of the French Alps until the Mont Blanc.

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