(Through adversity to the stars.)
One of the most impressive statistics I have read is the their entire first flight - distance and height - could take place WITHIN the external tank of the space shuttle.
We stand on the shoulders of giants!
The TSA pat-down took longer than the flight.
I was less impressed by Sam Beckett in Space, than with Enterprise’s opening credits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55LC7H8aT6M
Gustave Whitehead continues to get no respect!
They did their research without a government grant. Samuel Langley who had government backing failed. A lesson for now.
Yesterday, December 16th was the 244th anniversary of The Boston Tea Party (1773).
The summer we visited the site (again). Yes, the first flight was really short. The 4th was substantively long. Have to wonder if part of the issue of season was just freaking out over being airborne at all.
Next day we saw the plane itself. There’s a small sign saying “yes, this is the actual original Wright Bros plane”.
While many inventions are really evolutionary, small improvements on what had been done before, the Wrights were true inventors.
Almost every prior attempt at flight was guessing and trial and error, hoping to stumble on a solution. The Wrights’ research discovered that almost everything done before had to be thrown out. So they studied the concept of lift, not only for the flight of the plane, but for the application to propellers to generate thrust (forward lift).
But most importantly, they were the first to understand the need for and solution of three axis control. Anybody could make a paper airplane that “flies”. The secret was to design one that flies where you want it to.
The Wrights’ airplane patent was about a device that could develop lift and have three axis control. The original patent did not even provide for an engine. That came later.
And don’t forget - the Wrights had to teach themselves to fly - there were no instructor pilots in 1903.
One of my boys is an engineer at NASA Goddard. One day we ate lunch at the Club, at Orville's table. I told him he could go back to Goddard and tell people he ate at Orville Wright's table.
Gusative Whitehead should be remembered....
