Global helium supplies are running low. Again.
Helium—the second most common element in the universe—isn’t just the key ingredient that makes party balloons float. It cools MRI machines and scientific equipment, enables semiconductor manufacturing, and lifts weather balloons allowing meteorologists to make forecasts.
Because of the shortage, the US National Weather Service is curtailing weather balloon observations, scientists are shutting down experiments, and the University of Nebraska football team has announced it will (tragically, heroically) stop releasing hundreds of red balloons every time it scores a touchdown to ensure the school’s medical system has enough helium to keep treating patients.
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