A great way to determine whether you a hot air balloon ride is for you is to try a tethered balloon ride at a fair or publicity event. In a tethered ride, balloons are anchored and pilots simply fly the balloon up and down with passengers in tow. Rides are short and last just a few minutes each.
The aorta is the largest artery in the body. The aorta begins at the top of the left ventricle, the heart's muscular pumping chamber. The heart pumps blood from the left ventricle into the aorta through the aortic valve. Three leaflets on the aortic valve open and close with each heartbeat to allow one-way flow of blood. The aorta is a tube about a foot long and just over an inch in diameter.
The aorta. The primary blood vessel that transports oxygenated blood from the heart is the aorta. The aorta starts as the ascending aorta from the left ventricle of the heart. It then makes a hairpin bend (called the aortic arch) and becomes the descending aorta.