Zeppelin and Green Clouds

Illustration of a white zeppelin and seafoam green clouds on a dark blue background with red text on the bottom of the button

Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838-1917)—inventor of the Zeppelin, known colloquially as “Zeps”—flew his first airship, LZ 1, in 1900. Originally a German general, Zeppelin revolutionized air travel in the early 20th century. Zeppelin’s airships were originally for civilian use, and the first commercial passenger service was established in 1908. Passengers sat in gondolas hung underneath the hydrogen filled balloons of the airships, where they could witness beautiful views. The German armed forces, however, used zeppelins throughout WWI, each with the capacity to store up to two tons of bombs. Certainly, this provided a different kind of “view” which is explored here; this button features a Zeppelin flying amongst green clouds, which may serve as a symbol of war chemicals and bombings. 

By the end of WWI, Zeppelin military use had fallen out of favor due to the airships’ vulnerability to airstrikes and explosives; upon impact with the hydrogen-filled balloons, the airships would catch fire and crash. The most famous example of this can be seen with the Hindenburg disaster on May 6th, 1937, a Zeppelin which caught fire and crashed in New Jersey, killing 26 people.