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I don't know much about physics, but I wonder if there is a way of making something like a Balloon to float more than Hydrogen, Helium or Balloon with Vacuum. I say "Vacuum Balloon" because, supposedly, if you had a strong and light enough material to make a Balloon with vacuum to not be crushed by earth atmosphere, it would float.

From what I heard from questions about Vacuum Balloons is that, supposedly, you would just be around 5% to 7% lighter than conventional Helium and Hydrogen Balloons.

And of course, when someone asks about something beyond that, it always gets to a simple Jet Engine or Anti-gravity, which is... Well, not possible right now.

Well, I know that if there were something as good as anti-gravity out there, there would be billions of investment being thrown into it. But I'm just Wondering if there is something out there that kinda looks promising for "floating purposes".

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    $\begingroup$ The whole way that buyoancy works is is that gravity is pulling down harder on the solution that the thing is suspended in than it is on the thing, making what appears to be an upward force on the thing. You can't get "less stuff" in a volume than vacuum, so that's the theoretical limit to buoyant forces. $\endgroup$
    – Zo the Relativist
    Commented Nov 15, 2021 at 21:00
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    $\begingroup$ Warm hydrogen/helium is lighter than hydrogen/helium. Nothing is lighter than vacuum. $\endgroup$
    – peterh
    Commented Nov 15, 2021 at 21:30
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    $\begingroup$ Another option is to "fill" the balloon with photons, but that doesn't work either. For details, see the new answer I just posted to the linked question. $\endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    Commented Nov 16, 2021 at 10:46
  • $\begingroup$ Do you allow denser mediums than air? For example, balloons float faster in water than air. $\endgroup$
    – Max
    Commented Nov 17, 2021 at 10:40

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No, not in air. Helium is good. Hydrogen is better. Warm hydrogen has an even lower density and is thus even better. Vacuum is as low as it gets, but you need a massive hull to avoid crushing.

All that matters for buoyancy is the difference in density between the inside of your balloon and the outside. So, take an air balloon and put it in water, and it'll push upwards much, /much/ more than a hydrogen balloon in air.

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