Arctic balloon flight promotes nuclear

Paul Lavelle, a businessman from Chedworth, Gloucestershire, UK, has made a balloon flight in the Arctic Circle to promote the use of nuclear energy to combat climate change. The team – Lavelle, cameraman Steve Ryder and film maker Tim Russon – flew the hot air balloon from the centre of the remote Norwegian island of Svalbard alongside a melting glacier to highlight the effects that global warming is already having. The balloon was emblazoned with the words 'Nuclear Power, what else?' Lavelle said, "The locals had warned us that polar bears were becoming more hostile and so we took two guides along as armed guards in case of attack." According to Lavelle, "Using nuclear power has got to be the way ahead." In 1989, Lavelle launched a campaign to protect the ozone layer, which involved the world's first hot air balloon launch from the North Pole.

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