Title text:
Carefully maneuvering the balloon down a mineshaft in an effort to break the OTHER altitude record
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Source: https://xkcd.com/3161/
this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2025
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What if they ascended to normal altitude, then lowered a tether back down to the ground? Probably break some records as the wind swung you down to the ground.
I don't think that would be level-flight
Tether yourself on three sufficiently far apart points with no slack in the rope, and you will be stationary