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Gossamer Penguin
The ''Gossamer Penguin'' was a solar-powered experimental aircraft created by Paul MacCready's AeroVironment. MacCready, whose ''Gossamer Condor'' had made the first human-powered flight in 1977, told reporters two weeks in June, 1980 that "The first solar-powered flight ever made took place on May 18.""Plane flies on sun power", by Terrance W. McGarry, United Press International report in the ''Spokane (WA) Chronicle'', June 5, 1980, p12 The testing ground was at Minter Field outside of Shafter, California. The ''Penguin'' was a 3/4 scale version of the '' Gossamer Albatross II'', and had a 71 ft.(21.64 meter) wingspan and a weight, without pilot, of . The powerplant was an AstroFlight Astro-40 electric motor, driven by a 541 watt solar panel consisting of 3920 solar cells. Initial test flights were performed using a 28 cell NiCad battery pack instead of a panel. The test pilot for these flights was MacCready's 13-year-old son Marshall, who weighed . The official pilot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Experimental Aircraft
An experimental aircraft is an aircraft intended for testing new aerospace technologies and design concepts. The term ''research aircraft'' or ''testbed aircraft'', by contrast, generally denotes aircraft modified to perform scientific studies, such as weather research or geophysical surveying, similar to a research vessel. United States The term "experimental aircraft" also has specific legal meaning in Australia, the United States and some other countries; usually used to refer to aircraft flown with an experimental certificate. In the United States, this also includes most homebuilt aircraft, many of which are based on conventional designs and hence are experimental only in name because of certain restrictions in operation. US Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved 2018-01 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dryden Flight Research Center
The NASA Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) is an aeronautical research center operated by NASA. Its primary campus is located inside Edwards Air Force Base in California and is considered NASA's premier site for aeronautical research. AFRC operates some of the most advanced aircraft in the world and is known for many aviation firsts, including critical support for the first crewed airplane to exceed the speed of sound in level flight with the Bell X-1, highest speed ever recorded by a crewed, powered aircraft (North American X-15), the first pure digital fly-by-wire aircraft (F-8 DFBW), and many others. AFRC also operates a second site in Palmdale, Ca. known as Building 703, once the former Rockwell International/North American Aviation production facility, next to Air Force Plant 42. There, AFRC houses and operates several of NASA's Science Mission Directorate aircraft including SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy), a DC-8 Flying Laboratory, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1980s United States Experimental Aircraft
__NOTOC__ Year 198 (CXCVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sergius and Gallus (or, less frequently, year 951 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 198 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire *January 28 **Publius Septimius Geta, son of Septimius Severus, receives the title of Caesar. **Caracalla, son of Septimius Severus, is given the title of Augustus. China *Winter – Battle of Xiapi: The allied armies led by Cao Cao and Liu Bei defeat Lü Bu; afterward Cao Cao has him executed. By topic Religion * Marcus I succeeds Olympianus as Patriarch of Constantinople (until 211). Births * Lu Kai (or Jingfeng), Chinese official and general (d. 269) * Quan Cong, Chinese general and advisor (d. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canard Aircraft
In aeronautics, a canard is a wing configuration in which a small forewing or foreplane is placed forward of the main wing of a fixed-wing aircraft or a weapon. The term "canard" may be used to describe the aircraft itself, the wing configuration, or the foreplane.. Canard wings are also extensively used in guided missiles and smart bombs. The term "canard" arose from the appearance of the Santos-Dumont 14-bis of 1906, which was said to be reminiscent of a duck (''canard'' in French) with its neck stretched out in flight. Despite the use of a canard surface on the first powered aeroplane, the Wright Flyer of 1903, canard designs were not built in quantity until the appearance of the Saab Viggen jet fighter in 1967. The aerodynamics of the canard configuration are complex and require careful analysis. Rather than use the conventional tailplane configuration found on most aircraft, an aircraft designer may adopt the canard configuration to reduce the main wing loading, to better ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Solar-powered Aircraft
An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity. Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights. Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, the most common being batteries. Most have electric motors driving propellers or turbines. Crewed flights in an electrically powered airship go back to the 19th century, and to 1917 for a tethered helicopter. Electrically powered model aircraft have been flown at least since the 1970s, preceding the small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or drones used today. Small UAS could be used for parcel deliveries, and larger ones for long-endurance applications: aerial imagery, surveillance, telecommunications. The first crewed free flight by an electrically powered aeroplane, the MB-E1, was made in 1973, and most crewed electric aircraft today are still only experimental prototypes. Between 2015 and 2016, Solar Impulse 2 completed a circu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MacCready Solar Challenger
The Solar Challenger was a solar-powered electric aircraft designed by Paul MacCready's AeroVironment. The aircraft was designed as an improvement on the Gossamer Penguin, which in turn was a solar-powered variant of the human-powered Gossamer Albatross. It was powered entirely by the photovoltaic cells on its wing and stabilizer, without even reserve batteries, and was the first such craft capable of long-distance flight. In 1981, it successfully completed a 163-mile (262 km) demonstration flight from France to England. History The Solar Challenger was designed by a team led by Paul MacCready as a more airworthy improvement on the Gossamer Penguin, directly incorporating lessons learned from flight testing the earlier aircraft.Solar Challenger - E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MacCready Gossamer Albatross
The ''Gossamer Albatross'' is a human-powered aircraft built by American aeronautical engineer Dr Paul B MacCready's company AeroVironment. On June 12, 1979, it completed a successful crossing of the English Channel to win the second Kremer prize worth £100,000 (). Design and development The aircraft was designed and built by a team led by Paul B. MacCready, a noted American aeronautics engineer, designer, and world soaring champion. ''Gossamer Albatross'' was his second human-powered aircraft, the first being the ''Gossamer Condor'', which had won the first Kremer prize on August 23, 1977, by completing a -long figure-eight course. The second Kremer challenge was then announced as a flight across the English Channel recalling Louis Blériot's crossing of 1909. The aircraft is of " canard" configuration, using a large horizontal stabilizer forward of the wing in a manner similar to the Wright brothers' successful ''Wright Flyer'' aircraft and powered using pedals to drive a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), to give the U.S. space development effort a distinctly civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. NASA has since led most American space exploration, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968-1972 Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. NASA supports the International Space Station and oversees the development of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System for the crewed lunar Artemis program, Commercial Crew spacecraft, and the planned Lunar Gateway space station. The agency is also responsible for the Launch Services Program, which provides oversight of launch operations and countdown management f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine Minor Outlying Islands, and 326 Indian reservations. The United States is also in free association with three Pacific Island sovereign states: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. It is the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With a population of over 333 million, it is the most populous country in the Americas and the third most populous in the world. The national capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. and its most populous city and principal financial center is New York City. Paleo-Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
AstroFlight
Astroflight, Incorporated is a manufacturer of products for electric-powered radio controlled aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), brushless industrial motors, the world's first solar-powered aircraft and the world's first practical electric radio controlled model airplane. The company is based in Irvine, California, USA. Early history The company was founded in 1969 by Bob Boucher and Roland Boucher. Their goal was the development and production of a high-performance radio controlled sailplane for use in AMA-certified competition. That first sailplane, the "Malibu," finished third in its very first outing in San Jose that same year. Bob Boucher would use a Malibu in 1970 to set a closed-course world record for soaring. His record flight of 302 km took place at Waimanalo Beach, Hawaii. The introduction of the Fournier RF-4 electric R/C airplane in 1971 marked the debut of the world's first practical electric-powered model airplane. This would be the model which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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