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Environmental Research Aircraft And Sensor Technology
The Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology, or ERAST program was a NASA program to develop cost-effective, slow-flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that could perform long-duration science missions at altitudes above . The project included a number of technology development programs conducted by the joint NASA-industry ERAST Alliance. The project was formally terminated in 2003. Program overview According to NASA, "ERAST was a multiyear effort to develop the aeronautical and sensor technologies for a new family of remotely piloted aircraft intended for upper atmospheric science missions. Designed to cruise at slow speeds for long durations at altitudes of , such aircraft could be used to collect, identify, and monitor environmental data to assess global climate change and assist in weather monitoring and forecasting. They also could serve as airborne telecommunications platforms, performing functions similar to communications satellites at a fraction of the cost ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NASA ALTUS UAV
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States's civil list of government space agencies, space program, aeronautics research and outer space, space research. National Aeronautics and Space Act, Established in 1958, it succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to give the American space development effort a distinct civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. It has since led most of America's space exploration programs, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968–1972 Apollo program missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. Currently, NASA supports the International Space Station (ISS) along with the Commercial Crew Program and oversees the development of the Orion (spacecraft), Orion spacecraft and the Sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lockheed ER-2
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed the "''Dragon Lady''", is an American single-engine, high–altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) since the 1950s. Designed for all-weather, day-and-night intelligence gathering at altitudes above ), the U-2 has played a pivotal role in aerial surveillance for decades. Lockheed Corporation originally proposed the aircraft in 1953. It was approved in 1954, and its first test flight was in 1955. It was flown during the Cold War over the Soviet Union, China, Vietnam War, Vietnam, and Cuba. In 1960, Francis Gary Powers, Gary Powers was 1960 U-2 incident, shot down in a CIA U-2C over the Soviet Union by a surface-to-air missile (SAM). Major Rudolf Anderson, Rudolf Anderson Jr. was shot down in a U-2 during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. U-2s have taken part in post-Cold War conflicts in War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NASA Centurion
The NASA Centurion was the third aircraft developed as part of an evolutionary series of solar- and fuel-cell-system-powered unmanned aerial vehicles. AeroVironment, Inc. developed the vehicles under NASA's Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) program. They were built to develop the technologies that would allow long-term, high-altitude aircraft to serve as atmospheric satellites, to perform atmospheric research tasks as well as serve as communications platforms. It was developed from the NASA Pathfinder Plus aircraft and was developed into the NASA Helios. Centurion Centurion, originally built for the altitude on solar power milestone specified by the ERAST project, was the third generation aircraft in the NASA Pathfinder series of electrical-powered flying wing unmanned aircraft. The ERAST program managers had determined that an aircraft based on the Pathfinder/Pathfinder Plus concept would be the lowest risk approach of achieving the altitude goa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
NASA Pathfinder
The NASA Pathfinder and NASA Pathfinder Plus were the first two aircraft developed as part of an evolutionary series of Solar energy, solar- and fuel cell, fuel-cell-system-powered unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). AeroVironment, AeroVironment, Inc. developed the vehicles under NASA's NASA ERAST Program, Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) program. They were built to develop the technologies that would allow long-term, high-altitude aircraft to serve as atmospheric satellites, to perform atmospheric research tasks as well as serve as communications platforms. They were developed further into the NASA Centurion and NASA Helios aircraft. Pathfinder AeroVironment initiated its development of full-scale solar-powered aircraft with the Gossamer Penguin and Solar Challenger vehicles in the late 1970s and early 1980s, following the pioneering work of AstroFlight, Robert Boucher, who built the first solar-powered flying models in 1974. As part of the ERAST progra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Helios In Flight
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; ; Homeric Greek: ) is the god who personification, personifies the Sun. His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyperion ("the one above") and Phaethon ("the shining"). Helios is often depicted in art with a radiant crown and driving a horse-drawn chariot through the sky. He was a guardian of oaths and also the god of sight. Though Helios was a relatively minor deity in Classical Greece, his worship grew more prominent in late antiquity thanks to his identification with several major solar divinities of the Roman period, particularly Apollo and Sol (Roman mythology), Sol. The Roman Emperor Julian (emperor), Julian made Helios the central divinity of his short-lived revival of Religion in ancient Rome, traditional Roman religious practices in the 4th century AD. Helios figures prominently in several works of Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, in which he is often described ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rotax 912
The Rotax 912 is a horizontally-opposed four-cylinder, naturally-aspirated, four-stroke aircraft engine with a reduction gearbox. It features liquid-cooled cylinder heads and air-cooled cylinders. Originally equipped with carburetors, later versions are fuel injected. Dominating the market for small aircraft and kitplanes, Rotax produced its 50,000th 912-series engine in 2014. Originally available only for light sport aircraft, ultralight aircraft, autogyros and drones, the 912-series engine was approved for certified aircraft in 1995. Design and development The Rotax 912 was first sold in 1989 in non- certificated form for use in ultralights and motorgliders. The original 912 UL engine has a capacity of and a compression ratio of 9.1:1, and is designed to work with regular automotive gasoline, with up to 10% ethanol. The later certified 912 ULS variant has a compression ratio of 11:1, and requires 91-octane ("premium") auto gas (100LL leaded avgas can be used, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wing Aspect Ratio
In aeronautics, the aspect ratio of a wing is the ratio of its span to its mean chord. It is equal to the square of the wingspan divided by the wing area. Thus, a long, narrow wing has a high aspect ratio, whereas a short, wide wing has a low aspect ratio.Kermode, A.C. (1972), ''Mechanics of Flight'', Chapter 3, (p.103, eighth edition), Pitman Publishing Limited, London Aspect ratio and other features of the planform are often used to predict the aerodynamic efficiency of a wing because the lift-to-drag ratio increases with aspect ratio, improving the fuel economy in powered airplanes and the gliding angle of sailplanes. Definition The aspect ratio \text is the ratio of the square of the wingspan b to the projected wing area S, which is equal to the ratio of the wingspan b to the standard mean chord \text: \text \equiv \frac = \frac Mechanism As a useful simplification, an airplane in flight can be imagined to affect a cylinder of air with a diameter equal to the wingsp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rotax 914
The Rotax 914 is a turbo-charged, four-stroke, four-cylinder, horizontally opposed aircraft engine with air-cooled cylinders and water-cooled cylinder heads. It is designed and built by the Austrian company BRP-Powertrain, owned by Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP), as part of its Rotax brand.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', pages 242-243. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. Tacke, Willi; Marino Boric; et al: ''World Directory of Light Aviation 2015-16'', pages 260-261. Flying Pages Europe SARL, 2015. The engine commonly powers certified light aircraft, homebuilt aircraft, autogyros and military UAVs such as the MQ-1 Predator. Design and development Introduced in 1996, the Rotax 914 is a turbocharged development of the Rotax 912. The Rotax 914 has a turbocharger with an automatic wastegate controller and dual carburetors. It features dual capacitor discharge ignition, liquid-cooled cylinder heads and air-cooled cyli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pusher Propeller
In aeronautical and naval engineering, pusher configuration is the term used to describe a drivetrain of air- or watercraft with propulsion device(s) after the engine(s). This is in contrast to the more conventional tractor configuration, which places them in front. Though the term is most commonly applied to aircraft, its most ubiquitous propeller example is a common outboard motor for a small boat. “Pusher configuration” describes the specific (propeller or ducted fan) thrust device attached to a craft, either aerostats (airship) or aerodynes (aircraft, WIG, paramotor, rotorcraft) or others types such as hovercraft, airboats, and propeller-driven snowmobiles. History The rubber-powered "Planophore", designed by Alphonse Pénaud in 1871, was an early successful model aircraft with a pusher propeller. Many early aircraft (especially biplanes) were "pushers", including the Wright Flyer (1903), the Santos-Dumont 14-bis (1906), the Voisin-Farman I (1907), and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aurora Flight Sciences
Aurora Flight Sciences (AFS) is an American aviation and aeronautics research subsidiary of Boeing that specializes in special-purpose unmanned aerial vehicles. Aurora's headquarters is at Manassas Regional Airport. History In 1989, AFS was founded in Alexandria, Virginia, as a follow-on to the MIT Daedalus project. In 1991, its first aircraft was the Perseus proof of concept (POC) built for NASA which first flew at NASA Dryden. It was followed by two Perseus As and one Perseus B – built for the NASA ERAST Program. A twin engine Theseus was also built. In 1995, Aurora joined the Global Hawk team to build composite fuselage components and tail assemblies of the RQ-4 for Northrop Grumman and the USAF. In 2002, a demonstration aircrafMars High Altitude Deployment Demonstratorwas flown from an altitude of 100,000 feet to simulate the low density of the Martian atmosphere. Aurora was involved in NASA programs studying how to fly on Mars. In 2008, the DARPA Vulture aimed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Perseus A High Altitude Remotely Piloted Aircraft Being Towed In Flight
In Greek mythology, Perseus (, ; Greek: Περσεύς, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus and Bellerophon, the greatest Greek hero and slayer of monsters before the days of Heracles. He beheaded the Gorgon Medusa for Polydectes and saved Andromeda from the sea monster Cetus. He was the son of Zeus and the mortal Danaë, as well as the half-brother and great-grandfather of Heracles (as they were both children of Zeus, and Heracles's mother was Perseus' granddaughter). Etymology Because of the obscurity of the name "Perseus" and the legendary character of its bearer, most etymologists presume that it might be pre-Greek; however, the name of Perseus's native city was Greek and so were the names of his wife and relatives. There is some idea that it descended into Greek from the Proto-Indo-European language. In that regard Graves proposed the only Greek derivation available: ''Perseus'' might be from the Greek verb ''p� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manassas, Virginia
Manassas (), formerly Manassas Junction, is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. The population was 42,772 at the 2020 Census. It is the county seat of Prince William County, Virginia, Prince William County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. Manassas borders the independent city of Manassas Park, Virginia. The Bureau of Economic Analysis includes both Manassas and Manassas Park with Prince William County for statistical purposes. Manassas contains several historic sites dating from 1825 to 1914. Manassas surrounds the county courthouse, which is located on county property. Manassas is part of the Washington metropolitan area, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area and is in the Northern Virginia region. Etymology The independent city of Manassas takes its name from uncertain origins. One theory posits a Native Americans in the United St ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
