The History and Technology of Flight

HISTORY In the 1480s, Leonardo da Vinci sketched ideas for an ornithopter. It was never built but the design became the inspiration for modern helicopters.

Hot Air Balloons The Montgolfier brothers created the first successful man-carrying free flight machine in Paris in 1783. A balloon, filled with heated gas, floated over five miles across Paris. Soon after, balloons and ballooning became a craze that spread throughout the world. Balloons are known as “lighter than air” flight machines.

ROCKETRY Around 400 BC a man in Greece made a wooden bird fly using steam. About 100 BC another Greek, named Hero, created the “Hero Engine” using a spinning steam. The Chinese were the first to create rockets by filling bamboo with gunpower.

Rocket Science The foundations of rocket science were created by Sir Isaac Newton in the 17th century. Most early rockets were used in war, and were very successful. In 1898, a Russian school teacher named Tsiolkovsky came up with the idea of using liquid propelled rockets for space travel.

The Father of Modern Rocketry American Robert Goddard launched the first liquid propelled rocket on March 16, 1926. Goddard used liquid oxygen and gasoline, which was very dangerous!

Into Space In 1957 the Soviet Union became the first to use rockets to launch a satellite into space. The name of the satellite was Sputnik I.

NASA America created NASA and launched its own satellite into space just months after the Soviets. NASA continues “to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research.”

Sir George Cayley Considered the “father of aerial navigation” for his use of control surfaces and stabilizers. In the early 1800s, Cayley (of England) discovered the principles of flight by studying model airplanes. His models used fixed wings instead of the flapping wings most other researchers were using. (They thought wings had to flap like birds’ wings.) The forces of LIFT, THRUST, and DRAG were introduced for the first time.

Otto Lilienthal By 1891, Lilienthal had built and flown several successful gliders. By 1896 Lilienthal flew the first hang glider. He added a small gas motor to keep it in the air longer. Lilienthal was the first person to study gliders, specifically. He was the inspiration for many, include the Wright brothers, a few years later.

The Wright Brothers Built their first glider in 1900. Test flights took place at Kitty Hawk, NC. Learned to control the PITCH, YAW, and ROLL of their gliders. Went on the make and fly the world’s first powered, sustained and controllable airplane in 1903.

The Four Forces of Flight The Physics of Flight The Four Forces of Flight LIFT: created by air moving over the top and bottom of the wing. THRUST: The pulling power of propellers. GRAVITY: The mass of the airplane pulled down towards earth. DRAG: The friction on the plane’s surfaces against the air.

Bernouli’s Principle

Angle of Attack Angle of attack (AOA) is the angle between the oncoming air or relative wind and a reference line on the airplane or wing.

Angle of Incidence The angle of incidence can be increased or decreased by adding or removing “shims” beneath the front edge of the main wing.

Parts of an Airplane What does each part DO?

WATER ROCKETS

QUESTIONS: How much water will create the most pressure? Is a recovery system possible? If it works, how much could a parachute increase your flight time? Do fins help a rocket fly higher or just straighter? How might you protect an egg from breaking if we sent it up with your rocket?

Are YOU Ready to Launch?