Countdown to launch of balloon quest

American adventurer Steve Fossett plans to set off tomorrow on a quest to become the first man to fly a balloon solo nonstop around the world.

After weeks of waiting, Fossett’s launch crew in the dusty gold mining town of Kalgoorlie in the desert of Western Australia state were today laying out the giant balloon, Solo Spirit, he hopes will carry him eastward around the globe and into aviation history.

‘‘I’m feeling good, healthy, but with the usual concern,’’ Fossett said in comments posted on the mission’s website. ‘‘This is not just another round-the-world attempt; we mean to succeed this time. That’s a tall order.’’

The launch is planned for late Sunday night Kalgoorlie time (Sunday morning BST), when winds were expected to be light.

The millionaire investment tycoon is hoping his flight will be third time lucky two previous bids to become the first balloonist to fly solo around the world ended in failure.

If Fossett, 57, completes the record-breaking trip, he will spend about 15 days in a cramped, canary-yellow capsule, often breathing oxygen through a mask, eating military-style rations and sleeping no more than four hours a day during 45-minute naps.

To change fuel tanks for burners supplying hot air to the towering 140-foot-by-60-foot balloon, he must clamber out of the heated cabin into temperatures as low as minus 50F (minus 45C).

Jet stream winds will propel the balloon around the world at speeds up to 130mph at altitudes reaching 30,000 feet.

In 1998, Fossett came close to flying around the world but his flight ended abruptly when a violent thunderstorm ripped open his balloon and sent him plummeting into the Coral Sea 500 miles east of Australia.