# aerostat

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. An aircraft, such as a dirigible or balloon, that derives its lift from buoyancy rather than from wings or rotors.
2. A moored balloon flown in a semi-permanent manner, such as a border patrol monitoring balloon affixed at 18,000 feet (~6 km).

## Etymology
Borrowed from French aérostat, from Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr, “air”) + στατός (statós, “stable”), equivalent to aero- + -stat.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/aerostat