Part of a giant balloon made in Bristol and used by adventurer Steve Fossett in a record-breaking flight was back in the air after Australian souvenir hunters got more than they bargained for.

Fossett landed his 140-foot tall (42 metres) "Spirit of Freedom" balloon on a Queensland cattle station on 4 July, after becoming the first person to circle the globe solo.

He left the canopy of the balloon, which was made by Cameron Balloons, of Bedminster, Bristol, for souvenir hunters.

Ranchers tried to tow the helium-filled inner bladder of the balloon away using a four-wheel-drive vehicle, but it broke off and rose into the sky.

Steve Fossett's next stunt may involve flying a glider

Manager of the Durham Downs station Jaseleen Ferguson said: "The Toyota was lifting off the ground.

"It snapped away from the back of the Toyota and just went into the atmosphere."

The air safety authorities were alerted but an Air Services Australia spokesman said the balloon was unlikely to pose any threat to aviation.

New adventure

The cupboard-size capsule which carried Mr Fossett around the world in 14 days will rest beside Charles Lindbergh's 1927 trans-Atlantic plane "Spirit of Saint Louis" in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington in the USA

Mr Fossett is planning his next adventure - flying a glider up to the stratosphere 18,288 metres (60,000 feet) above southern New Zealand.

The adventurer already holds world records in ballooning, sailing and flying airplanes.

He also swam the English Channel in 1985, was placed 47th in the Iditarod dog sled race in 1992 and participated in the 24 hours Le Mans car race in 1996.