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The Hindenburg Disaster

Read each section
carefully.
Answer the questions at
the end.

Photo: The Hindenburg airship

descending into flames.
Photo in the public domain.

The Hindenburg disaster is the

most famous airship accident in history.

Hindenburg’s passengers could travel from Europe to North and South America in half the
time of the fastest ocean liner, and they travelled in luxurious interiors that would never
again be matched in the air; they enjoyed meals in an elegant dining room, listened to
an aluminium piano in a modern lounge and slept in comfortable cabins.

All of that came to an end On May 6, 1937. While attempting to land at the Naval Air
Station in Lakehurst, New Jersey at the end of a two-day transatlantic flight from Frankfurt,
Germany, the Hindenburg airship unexpectedly burst into flames and crashed to the ground.
In just 32 seconds, the great Hindenburg was reduced to a fiery pile of rubble that consumed
the lives of 35 of the 97 people onboard.

The fire spread so quickly — consuming the ship in less than a minute — that survival was
largely a matter of where one happened to be located when the fire broke out.
Sadly, the Hindenburg disaster would have never happened had its German designer Hugo
Eckener simply used non-flammable helium instead of the highly combustible hydrogen gas
to float the ship. The question is- why didn’t he?

First, U.S. law prevented it.

U.S. scientists had only recently discovered helium at this time and America had the global
monopoly on the gas. Nazi Germany was prohibited from acquiring helium because of world
fears that they would use it for weaponry and other military purposes.
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Eckener, noted for his opposition to the Nazi regime (despite being funded by it), travelled to
Washington in 1929 to argue the helium ban and demonstrate his intentions for the noble
gas. Incredibly, he convinced U.S. officials to grant him the authorisation to use helium to
float his Hindenburg.

But it always comes down to money.

Eckener returned to Germany and quickly realized that he did not have the facilities or the
equipment to store and use helium, and even if he did, the costs were far higher than he was
allotted through his Nazi-funded budget. Being a relatively new commodity and one of
limited supply, helium was 6-10 times more expensive than hydrogen in 1937.

The builder had to make the decision to move forward with hydrogen if he wanted to see his
airship come to life.

To ease the minds of the public, a subtle marketing campaign was launched to ensure that the
hydrogen ship was perfectly safe for passengers and crew. (They were even allowed to
smoke in the smoker’s lounge!)

After millions listened to the Hindenburg burn to Earth behind radio reporter Herbert
Morrison’s famous cry, “Oh the humanity!” the American public opinion shifted and the law
that prohibited the export of helium to Germany was amended, permitting the use of helium
gas for non-military purposes.

Answer the questions below.

1. Draw the electronic configurations of hydrogen and helium.

2. Explain why helium would have been a safer choice for the airship than hydrogen.

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3. Both hydrogen and helium airships can float in air. Why is this?
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4. List two uses of helium today.

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5. What properties of helium make it suitable for these uses?

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