aerostat
noun
aero·stat
ˈer-ō-ˌstat 
: a lighter-than-air aircraft (such as a balloon or blimp) compare aerodyne
Examples of aerostat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This would allow the aerostat to function as a high-altitude relay node, performing a role similar to Starlink in providing wide-area connectivity.
—
Vikram Mittal, Forbes.com, 17 Feb. 2026
The future, chock-full of super-stealth warplanes, blinding-fast missiles and network-crippling hacks, will also feature aerostats — specialty blimps, for the uninitiated.
—Colin Demarest, Axios, 9 Apr. 2025
China’s use of aerostats — which include free-floating balloons like the one found hovering over the United States, steerable balloons or airships, and tethered balloons — to observe its own people offers clues to the scope and ambition of a program shrouded in secrecy.
—Lily Kuo, Washington Post, 16 Feb. 2023
Flying continuously inside the Earth’s atmosphere requires lift though: either the buoyancy of a lighter-than-air craft such as a balloon, airship or aerostat provided by hot air or low-density gas, or lift from airflow generated by a heavier than air craft.
—David Hambling, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2023
An aerostat is a giant surveillance balloon.
—Annie Jacobsen, Wired, 20 Jan. 2021
Conventional aerostats require a sizable ground crew, upwards of 10 or more people, to operate the tethers and winches needed to send the aerostat up to the necessary altitude and bring it back down.
—Tracy Staedter, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Apr. 2018
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Vikram Mittal, Forbes.com, 17 Feb. 2026
The future, chock-full of super-stealth warplanes, blinding-fast missiles and network-crippling hacks, will also feature aerostats — specialty blimps, for the uninitiated.
—Colin Demarest, Axios, 9 Apr. 2025
China’s use of aerostats — which include free-floating balloons like the one found hovering over the United States, steerable balloons or airships, and tethered balloons — to observe its own people offers clues to the scope and ambition of a program shrouded in secrecy.
—Lily Kuo, Washington Post, 16 Feb. 2023
Flying continuously inside the Earth’s atmosphere requires lift though: either the buoyancy of a lighter-than-air craft such as a balloon, airship or aerostat provided by hot air or low-density gas, or lift from airflow generated by a heavier than air craft.
—David Hambling, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2023
An aerostat is a giant surveillance balloon.
—Annie Jacobsen, Wired, 20 Jan. 2021
Conventional aerostats require a sizable ground crew, upwards of 10 or more people, to operate the tethers and winches needed to send the aerostat up to the necessary altitude and bring it back down.
—Tracy Staedter, IEEE Spectrum, 4 Apr. 2018
Cite this Entry
“Aerostat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aerostat. Accessed 13 May. 2026.
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