Eleanor Vadala (born September 8, 1923) is an American chemist, materials engineer and balloonist. She became director of research and development at the Naval Air Development Center in Pennsylvania, where she helped to develop light synthetic materials for use in aircraft. One of her jobs was the testing of fabric in existing balloons to ensure they could be used safely. On July 28, 2019, Vadala was inducted into the Balloon Federation of America Hall of Fame, at the National Balloon Museum in Indianola, Iowa.