Category Book of Flight

BY the summer of 1945, U. S. aircraft had sunk

over 700,000 tons of Japanese warships and destroyed over 12,000 Japanese planes. Yet the і Japanese would not surrender. Meanwhile, the I United States had built the largest bomber of the war, the B-29 Superfortress. It had also secretly developed the atomic bomb.

In August, U. S. president Harry Truman decided to use the bomb to end the war and continuing loss of American lives. He ordered the flight of the B-29 Enola Gay to carry and drop the atomic bomb on Japan. Called Uittle Bov, the weapon was a 9,/ 00 pound uranium bomb. On August 6, 1945, the bomb was dropped over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. In seconds, the blast smashed the city and killed thousands of people. Yet Japan still did not surrender. Three days later, a 10,000 pound plutonium bomb, called “hat Mari,” was dropped from a second B-29 over Nagasaki. This explosion killed thousands more. On August 15, Japan tlnally agreed to surrender.

History Fact: Lethal Weapon

The blast of the uranium bomb dropped on Hirosh ma was equal to about

20,0 tons of TNT.

Mushroom Cloud

A giant cloud rises from a test explosion of an atomic bomb in the Pacific. Such blasts can generate over 100 million degrees F. of heat. Atomic bombs dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki wreaked terrible destruction and caused Japan’s unconditional surrender.

f Famous B-29

The Enola вау comes in for a landing on its base after its historic mission. The Superfortress was donated to the National Air and Space Museum after the war.

N June 29, 1995, the space shuttle MLntti* made a historic flight. It successfully met and docked with the Russian space station Mir, or “Peace,” orbiting 245 miles above the Earth. Shuttle mission commander Robert L. Gibson steered Atlantis into docking position near Mir. Both were hurtling through space at 17,500 miles an hour. Gibson had to slow Atlantic down and very carefully maneuver it to avoid a crash. I Ie also had to act quickly enough to catch and lock onto the space station before it drifted beyond reach. He performed the maneuver perfectly.

After docking, uxz AJikintitt crew floated through a connecting tunnel to enter Mir and met the Russian cosmonauts inside. For five days, the two crews socialized and worked on experiments together. This was the first ol several visits of space shuttles to Mir. The two countries that were once fierce rivals in space have since done much to cooperate with each other to increase space knowledge.

Space Partners

A mission patch for a 1996 Shuttle-Mir mission emphasizes the cooperation between the two nations in peaceful space projects. At right, a poster promotes the rental of space on Mir to American research companies.

> ► Linked Together

Docked in space, the shuttle Atlantis and Mir space station float in orbit. This picture was taken by a Soyuz ferry spacecraft in June 1995. Such joint missions helped pave the way for work on the new International Space Station.

Fun Fact: Long Trip

The record time for living in space is held by Russian doctor faJgw Pnliakov. He stayed on Mir a total of 438 days! From his experience, scientists learned much about how the human body adapts to long periods in space.

Maneuvering in Space

Steering the shuttle in space requires two systems. The orbital maneuvering system (OMS) engines slow the shuttle down and move it up or down. Then 44 rocket thrusters on the craft’s nose and tail can be fired to change speed or direction.

The Russian space station Mir passes over New Zealand. In orbit since 1986, the station was replaced by the new International Space Station in 2001. Mir was abandoned and allowed to burn up in the atmosphere as it fell back to Earth.

к 4 Space Bear Magellan T. Bear became the Щ first official teddy bear in space when he flew aboard tne shuttle Discovery in 1995. Sponsored by a group of school chilcren, he was an "education specialist."
space and Fly on i space shuttle? Do you get sick? I low do you use the bathroom? What do you eat’
sleep: 1 hese are И,_ – яА BBJl all questions astronauts. в ^ЩИНННРчН are olten asked. Я і .Most astronauts are very excited at liftoff and ЩЕ jfi_ they – enjoy the Iree fl leeling ol weightless – 1 – ness in space. Some Л| are a little space sick at lirst, but soon adjust to the lack of gravity – They learn to glide, twist, and somersault expertly through space. The crew eat the same foods and drinks they enjoy on Earth, including fruits, vegetables, meats, and desserts, but they eat them Irom disposable containers. The astronauts do not shower because water would escape and float in blobs everywhere. Instead, they squirt water on a sponge and take sponge baths. The shuttle has a bathroom and special toilet the crew use. To sleep, the astronauts curl up inside sleeping bags hung on a wall or simply float in a comfortable spot.
емдчпнтке Tttf OM. Y
Space Toilet Astronauts aboard the shuttle use this special toilet. It has air suction in place of gravity to remove wastes through a hose and bowl. It also has foot restraints so the astronaut using it won’t float away!
V Mission Patches Space shuttle mission patches have a design symbolizing each mission and the names of astronauts on the mission.
Butterfly Experiment These Painted Lady butterflies emerged from cocoons on a space shuttle mission. They were an experiment planned by a group of high school students to see if caterpillars can develop in the microgravity of space.
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▼ Moving in Space

Mission specialist Carl Welz floats through a tunnel from the shuttle cabin into a science laboratory module. Although astronauts often feel nausea at first, they soon enjoy moving in space. Many say it feels like swimming in air.

► Brushing Up

Astronauts Frank Culbertson and Daniel Bursch brush their teeth on the shuttle.

They use disposable brushes with edible toothpaste and squirt water in their mouths. There is no sink or running water because the water would float around the cabin.

A Sally K, Ride (1951- )

Sally Ride became the first American woman in space in 1983.Trained as a physicist, she joined NASA in 1978 and became an astronaut. She flew on the space shuttle Challenger as a mission specialist. Here, she sleeps in a sleeping restraint on the shuttle.

OWARD the end ol World War II, aircraft entered a new age ol speed. In 1944 and 1945, German pilots flew the first jet-powered lighter in combat, the Alesserschmitt Ale 262. Allied pilots were astonished to spot it zooming over 100 miles an hour laster than any Allied lighter, and with no propellers!

Alter the war, many pilots tried to fly taster th an the speed of sound. On October 14, 1947, American test pilot Chuck Yeager flew an orange bullet-shaped plane with a rocket engine. It was the Bell X-l, designed to break the sound barrier. Carried up by a B-29 mother plane to save fuel, the X-l was dropped in the air. Yeager lired the rocket engine anil pushed the plane to over 700 miles an hour, past Alach 1 —the speed ot sound. The plane bulleted, then blasted through the sound barrier. Once past Alach 1. it was so smooth, said Yeager, “Grandma could be sitting up there sipping lemonade.”

‘Suddenly the Alach needle began to fluctuate…then lipped right off the ocale, I thought / wao oeeuig thi ago! We were flying ouperoonic:

—Chuck Yeager describing flying
through the sound barrier

Bell X-i

Test pilot Chuck Yeager stands beside his rocket-powered Bell X-1, named the Glamorous Glennis for his wife. The plane now hangs in the National Air and Space Museum. Streamlined for speed, it is shaped like a.50 caliber bullet.

Charles “Chuck" Yeager (1923- )

A World War II fighter pilot. Chuck Yeager became an Air Force test pilot after the war. He made history as the first person to break the sound barrier in 1947. At the time, many believed a plane flying through the sound barrier would be ripped apart by the shock wave. Yeager later rose to the rank of brigadier general.

Famous Flight

On October 14,1947, the Bell X-1 accelerates and races toward the sound barrier. Flying at 43,000 feet, pilot Chuck Yeager became the first person to travel faster than sound, at Mach 1.06.

< MaCHMETER

Mach numbers measure the speed of an aircraft in relation to the speed of sound. Mach 1 is the speed of sound, which increases with temperature because sound travels faster in warmer air. At

40,0 feet, Mach I is 657 miles an hour.

► The Sound Barrier

Moving through the air, a plane makes pres­sure waves. When the plane catc hes up with its own pressure waves, they bunch together, building into a shock wave. Passing the speed of sound, the plane flies ahead of its pressure waves, forming a cone-like shock wave.

Frank Whittle (1907-1996)

Frank Whittle was a young British pilot who patented the first turbojet engine in 1931. It used a jet of hot gases instead of propellers. Soon after, German engineer Hans von Ohain invented a similar engine Germany first produced a jet fighter in 1943, the Messerschmitt Me 262. A year later, the British began flying a jet fighter, the Gloster Meteor. Its engines were based on a Whittle design.

f Messerschmitt Me 262

The first jet-propelled fighter used in combat, the German Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (swallow) was flown during World War II. Four 30 mm cannons made it a fearsome opponent. This

ETURNING to Earth, the shuttle orbiter is trans­formed from a spacecraft into a giant glider.

First, its maneuvering engine rockets fire a last time to slow it down to drop from orbit.

Reentering Earth’s atmosphere, it passes through scorch mg heat and tremendous friction. The thermal heat shield does its job well and protects the ship during the fiery journey. Next, computers guide the orbiter through a series of S turns to slow it down more. I he orbiter’s speed drops f rom over 17,000 miles an hour to about 350 miles an hour.

The craft glides in silently. At about 20 miles from the runway, the mission commander takes control and brings it in lor a landing. The shuttle can also land automatically, if necessary. As the wheels touch down, the craft lands at between 200 and 226 miles an hour and slows to a stop. Then the astronauts exit the orbiter on ordinaiy

I Coming in to Land

Like a giant bird, the shuttle Columbia ghees unpowered to land at Kennedy Space Center. The commander aims carefully landing the craft. If it misses the runway, he cannot turn around to core Pack and try again.

і What a Drag

Once the shuttle’s wheels hit the runway, a parachute opens to slow the orbiter.

As the craft lands at over 200 miles an hour, the drag chute helps it gradually b^ake to a stop.

► Getting д Lift

The shuttle Atlantis is lifted in a machine to mount it on the back of з Boeing 747. With no power to fly through the atmosphere after it lands, the shuttle orbiter must be ferried by a 7<r back to its launch site.

► Piggyback Ride

Aboard a 747 ferry, the shuttle Atlantis returns to Florida after being repaired in California. Shuttles are used over and over, always launching from Kennedy Space Center n Florida.

today’s four space shuttles have all flown many times. Since the first mission in 1981, there have been over 100 shuttle flights.

HE largest object ever built in space, the Intern­ational Space Station (ISS) Floats in Earth orbit in an artist’s concept. Begun in 1998, it will sprawl twice the size ol a football held when complete. The ISS is being built jointly bv 16 nations, including the United States, Russia, Canada, countries of the European Space Agency, and Japan. It will cost about $60 billion.

Already’ home to an American-Russian crew, the station has a roomy kitchen, bathroom, and sleeping and exercise areas. Omni solar panels convert energy From the Sun lor electric power. The station will provide an international center For many kinds ol scientific research. In its laboratories, scientists will study lile in space and test new medicines and materials lor use on Earth. One day, the ISS may also be the departure terminal For missions to other planets.

^ Outpost in Space

leveling 770 miles high over Fdrth, the International Space Station is shown as it will look when complete, around 2006.

A crew of 7 will live m a space as big as two 747 jet cabins. The size of two football fields, the station will weigh a million pounds.

Fun Fact: Big Job

More than 40 trips by space shuttle and other craft will be required to deliver the parts, supplies, and equipment needed to build the ISS.

SOME 220 miles over Earth, the world’s highest

construction site bustles with activity and work is in lull swing. Workers move cranes hoisting huge building blocks. The giant structure going up is the International Space Station. The workers building it are astronauts.

The construction work will continue lor five years. The astronauts will spend many hours of spacewalks assembling the station. They will get help from a large robotic arm made in Camida and possibly a flying robotic “eye” that can circle around to inspect the huge station.

In the finished station, scientists believe the absence of gravity will allow them to do experiments not possible on Earth. They hope to develop new drugs, new ways to treat and prevent diseases, more powerful computer chips, stronger metals, and better weather forecasting systems. Life on the ISS will also provide knowledge for future space travel beyond Earth’s orbit.

Early Space Station

In May 2000, the first parts of the new ISS orbit Earth. The station at this stage has two sections, or modules. The first U. S. module, Unity (top), is joined to the Russian power and propulsion module, Zarya ("Sunrise").

* All Systems Go

In this artist’s concept, a space shuttle has docked at the finished ISS. When complete, the station will be a busy center of scientific research, new discoveries, and exciting plans for future missions to explore space.

HE Korean War, from 1950 to 1953, was the first con­flict where jet fighters battled. The United States fought Communist forces in Korea. In the short time since World War II, jets had made propeller lighters obsolete. Faster speeds required pilots to react more quickly. The opposing planes could now close in over 10 miles in 30 seconds. The U. S. F-86 Sabre Jet and the Russian-built MiG-15 were the primary adversaries in Korea. Reaching speeds of nearly 670 miles an hour, the jets clashed in a famous zone known as "MiG Alley.”

From 1961 to 1973, the United States again fought Communist forces, this time in the Vietnam War. U. S. bombers dropped more tons of bombs in ill is war than both sides dropped in World. War II. I lehcopters played a critical role in Vietnam. Powerful helicopter gunships attacked the enemy and transported troops and supplies to the steamy jungle battle grounds. Helicopters also zoomed in to rescue wounded soldiers and downed pilots from behind enemy lines.

Checking It Out

Mechanics in Okinawa check a captured MiG-15 repainted with U. S. Air Force markings in 1953.Test pilots who flew this MiG said that overall, the F-86 was a better plane.

►Eject!

With jets’faster speed, pilots no longer bailed out. This Navy pilot springs from his plane in an ejection seat.

A parachute will open to land him safely on the ground.

► ► То the Rescue

The interior of the Sikorsky HH-3E helicopter (right) was a welcome sight to many U. S. fighter pilots in Vietnam.

Armed with heavy guns, the chopper flew in to rescue pilots downed in battle. It flew wounded men to base hospitals.

* Green Giant

Painted in olive green camouflage, the Sikorsky НИ ЗЕ was a large, powerful helicopter affectionately called the "Jolly Green Giant." A beacon of hope for stranded soldiers as well as pilots, it saved many lives in the war.

McDonnell F-t, Phantom II

Flying night reconnaissance, an F-4 Phantom II fighter crosses Vietnam in this painting. Able to race twice the speed of sound, the F-4 was a versatile plane. The first jet to find and destroy targets by radar without ground support, it excelled in dogfights with MiG-21 jets and also served as a bomber.

► Republic F-105D Thunderchief

Laden with bombs, two F-105D Thunderchief fighter-bombers head toward targets. The F-105D could carry over 12,000 pounds ofbombs. lt flew a large number of air strikes in Vietnam. As a fighter, it could deliver an amazing six thousand rounds of cannon fire per minute.

WARS over the last decades have greatly changed

and advanced military aircraft. The development of more sophisticated technology in radar, navigation, and weapons systems has produced faster, stronger, and more complex jet fighters and bombers.

Aircraft carriers have also changed. Jets are heavier than propeller aircraft. They require the boost of a catapult, like a giant slingshot, to launch them from the carrier deck. Carriers now have a catapult officer in charge of launching, called a “shooter.”

In a launch, a catapult hurls the plane from a standstill to a speed of 200 miles an hour in the air. Strong arresting cables on deck help the jets land safely. The jets have a tailhook to snag the cables as they kind.

Modern carriers, up to 1,100 leet long, are like floating air bases. They may carry’ nearly’ 100 planes. These carrier-based aircraft have been active in conflicts and peacekeeping from Vietnam to the present.

* Aik BASt AT StA

Jet fighters fly m formation over the carrier USS John C. Stenrm, The big ship bristles with aircraft, including F-14 Tomcat and F-18 Hornet fighters,

S 3B Vikings, EA-6B Prowlers, and E -2C Hawkeye AWACS surveillance planes.

▼ Military Jets

An AV-88 Harrier"jump jet" (top) lifts straight up iri a vertical takeoff. Its jet nozzles can be directed to take of*, nover, or land like a helicopter or fly straight ahead. F-18 Hornet fighters (center) line an aircraft carrier deck. Bottom, a Hornet launches from the deck.

tomorrow’s space explorers travel? Scientists are working to design new vehicles to make space travel easier and cheaper.

TODAYS jet Fighters are among the fastest planes ever built. The F-16 Fighting Falcon, for example, can fly at more than twice the speed of sound. Alodern fighters use “fly by wire” flight. This means physical cables no longer pull on control surfaces su ch as the rudder. Instead, computers send signals along electric wires to motors that move control surfaces.

To increase speed, supersonic fighters today have streamlined bodies with pointed noses and swept-back or arrow-shaped wings. Some have ultra-thin wing edges to reduce drag and cut through air easily at high speeds. To withstand the scorching heat of supersonic speeds, the planes have "skins” of heat-resistant metals such as titanium.

Most fighters intercept and attack other aircraft. They may also attack ground targets. Pilots today locate targets electronically and fire deadly radar-guided or heat-seeking missiles. Modern fighters can cost up to $50 million each! MucJj of the cost is for electronic radar, flight, and navigation systems.

► F-18 Hornet Research Fighter

This F-18 has been modified to test a new feature. Strakes, hinged structures on its nose, open to stabilize the jet as it dives at a steep angle of attack. They give the pilot better handling in an otherwise dangerous maneuver.

A Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk

The first "stealth" plane in combat, the F-117A (above and left) flew in the Persian Gulf War in 1991. Its shape and special paint scatter radar beams to help it fly undetected. Hunting at night, the Nighthawk fires laser-guided missiles.

►Thunderbirds on Display

F-16 Thunderb! rds, the U. S.Air Force demonstration team, roar into a Diamond formation. A pilot’s view (below) shows how close the jets fly. Such maneuvers showcase both the pilots’precision and skill and the capabilities of the F-16.

4 A-10 Thunderbolt II

Sweeping down from the sky, an A-10 Thunderbolt II dives to attack. Designed to support ground troops, it can fly low and slow to destroy targets such as tanks with guns and missiles. The A-10 served in rescue missions during the GulfWar.

Based on the "lifting body," it would lift off in an upright position, orbit, then return to Earth and land belly-down on a runway.

Another design was the X-37. It would be launched into orbit from the space shuttle. It would work in orbit, then return to Earth by its own power.

The X–43 was a plane designed to launch spacecraft into orbit. Known as the “Hyper X, th is plane would fly at "hypersonic" speeds, many times the speed of sound. A “scram-jet engine would allow it to use oxygen from the air to burn fuel, instead of using costly rocket fuel. The Hyper-X could launch craft into space at a tenth the cost of the rocket-propelled space shuttle. In coming years, scientists will continue research to develop new experimental concepts.

4 Hyper-X

In this artist’s concept, the X-*3,or Hyper-X research plane, roars up towa’d the fringes of space. Such planes, resigned to fly many times tne speed of sound, may one day oe usee to launch vehicles into space orbit.

►x-33

The X-33, or VentureStar, flies in Earth orbit in this artist’s concept. It is one of many ideas for reusable vehicles to lower the cost of space travel. It would take off like a rocket, orbit, and land horizontally, like an arpiare.

Fun Fact: Split-Second Timing

The fastest "air-breathing," wingec aircra’t today, the SR-71 Blackbird, travels in soeeds measured in tens of miles-per-minute. Hypersonic p’a^es like the Hyper-X may travel in speeds of miles-per-second!

► Mother Ship

This art shows how the Hyper-X would be launched, riding on a rocket uncer the wing of a B-52. Dropped at 43,000 feet, the rocket would boost the Hyper-X to

100,0 feet, then fall off. The plane would fly on by its own power.

Testing, Testing

Scientist Vince Rausch holds a model Hyper-X mounted on a rocket in a wind tunnel. Wind-tunnel tests show such a plane could fly to Mach 10 to reach space. In an artist’s concept (right), a Pegasus rocket lifts a Hyper-X on its nose.

* X-37

In this imaginary scene, the X-37 is ready for launch from the payload bay of a space shuttle, Aoout half the length of the shuttle, this craft would orbit up to 21 days, performing experiments. lt would then return to Earth on its own.

FOR years a top secret, the existence of military spy planes made world headlines in 1960 when one was captured. Francis Gary Powers, American pilot of a U-2 reconnaissance jet, was caught spying1 over the Soviet Union and shot down.

The U-2 was designed in the 1950s, during the Cold War between the United States and Soviet Union. It was a long-winged, glider-like plane with a panoramic camera. Flying at high altitudes, it took photographs to search for Soviet ballistic missiles.

In the 1960s, another spy plane, the Lockheed SR-~1 Blackbird, was introduced. It could fly even higher and laster than the U-2 and photograph 100,000 square miles. The first stealth plane, it had a flattened shape and dark coating that helped it elude radar.

Today, both planes still fly missions to monitor world hot spots. By giving warning of dangerous conflicts, they help world leaders plan strategies.

Plying High

The Lotkheed U-2 is a hfgh – a titude reconnaissance jet. Its 80-foot wingspan^ives it lift to fly o. e’ 73,00C”eet.’t first flew over the Soviet _"’or n :re 19501s to pHotograph missi e activity.

U-2 Camera

7vs U-2 Нусог В came’ayow г the Museum, took retailed ground pictures of Cuba, ike the one at top center in the ‘960s/ney revealed Soviet missiles, which iec to the Cuban Missile Cr sis.

Lockheed SR-71

This high-altitude spy plane flies faster than any other aircraft. It set a speed record of 2,193 miles an hour. Like the U-2, it takes reconnaissance photographs. The plane’s shape and dark color earned it the name "Blackbird."

B-2 Stealth Bomber

One of the most technically advanced of all aircraft, the B-2 Stealth Bomber has a flying wing design and sophisticated computer technology. Its shape and dark coating help it penetrate enemy defenses without detection. First test flown in 1989, it served in the conflict in the Balkans.

Global Hawk

This experimental unmanned aircraft was developed by the Air Force. Its mission is to give military commanders a high-altitude, long-endurance system to photograph large geographic areas.

Fun Fact: Speedy Spy Plane

The SR-71 can fly at altitudes of 90,000 feet and as fast as Mach 3.3. It has set several speed records, including a flight between Los Angeles, California and Washington, D. C. in just 64 minutes!

JET power, first used in World War II, transformed the world of flight. With superior thrust, jet engines allowed planes to fly longer distances at higher speeds. In 1952, the First commercial jetliner, the British De I lavilland Comet, began service.

The Comet Hew 490 miles an hour, faster than any other passenger plane. Its 44 passen­gers traveled eight miles up in a comfortable pressurized cabin. Quiet jet engines made the ride smooth and relaxing. Yet in 1954, two Comets exploded in midair. The cause w as high-altitude stress on the plane’s metal body.

The next jet airliners were built with strong, pressure-resistant fuselages. I he American Boeing 707, introduced in 1957, was sale, fast, and comlortcible, with 145 seats. In 1969, Boeing built the lirst jumbo jet—the 747. I Ins became the world’s most successful jetliner. With a wide – body f uselage that can seat over 400, it lowered the cost of tur travel. Today, millions of people around the world have flown in the 747.

< Boeing 707

Sleek and streamlined, the Boeing /07 was the first II. S.jet transport airliner. It measured 144 feet long, with a wingspan of 130 feet. Flying nearly 600 miles an hour, it cut previous travel time nearly in half.

▼ The President’s Plane

Air force One, a Boeing 747, soars majestically ovei Mount Rushrnore, South Dakota. This plane carries the President of the United States on business around the world. It has a special interior for the President.

Concorde

The Concorde, developed by the British and French, is the world’s only supersonic jetliner. It first flew in 1969. Able to fly over twice the speed of sound, it could whisk passengers across the Atlantic in three and a half hours. The crash of an Air France Concorde in 2000 resulted in the grounding of all Concordes for safety testing

NLIKE fixed-wing airplanes, helicopters have

whirling rotary wings, called rotors. Helicopters can fly forwards, backwards, sideways, straight up or down, and hover in one spot. The idea of the helicopter is very old. The ancient Chinese had a toy helicopter, called a “flying top.” Early designers, including Sir George Cayley, inventor of the glider, envisioned helicopters. Yet it was not until much later that real helicopters appeared. In 1907, Frenchman Paul Cornu built anti flew a helicopter m the lirst free flight. The double-rotor craft rose five feet olf the ground for 20 seconds.

The f li st practical single-rotor helicopters were invented by Igor Sikorsky in the 1950s. Since then, helicopters have performed many tasks other planes cannot. Because they can take off and land in small spaces and hover, helicopters serve as rescue craft, flying ambulances, lifting vehicles, and traffic observers. Modern helicopters range from small, light craft to heavy military gunships and transports.

Autogiro

Invented in 1925, the autogiro (top) was a combination of an airplane and a helicopter. It used a propeller to move forward, but a wind-blown rotor for lift. The craft could not hover, but could use its rotor to fly very slowly.

Helicopter Commuter

New York Airways, the "first Helicopter Airline," offered early commuter service in this 15-passenger Vertol 44B helicopter. lt flew day and night between Manhattan La Guardia and Newark Airports. It carried passengers, freight, and mail. The helicopter also flew sightseeing flights.

► Firefighter

A large helicopter calleo an aircrane loads

2,0 gallons of water by a hose from a lake. It will fly to a raging forest fire in California. Crew aboard will use the water to help battle the fire.

Helicopter Rescue Team

A U. S. Coast Guard helicopter hoists rescue swimmer Jason Shepard back aboard after a day of training. Helicopters with trained crew fly in to save people trapped on sinking ships or stranded at sea.

MARS, the red planet, has tascinated people lor centuries.

Since the 1960s, many have dreamed of exploring: and perhaps colonizing Mars. Earth’s neighbor in the solar system, Mars lies about 40 million miles away. About hall the size of Earth, it has many features similar to Earth’s. These include mountains, canyons, and polar ice caps. Yet Mars’ air is 100 times thinner than Earth’s and the planet is a freezing desert.

In 1976, two ’iking landers touched down on Mars and in 1997, Pathfinder landed. I hese craft sent back images that showed Mars to be rocky and arid. Yet scientists believe. Mars once had water that may have held microscopic life. In 2001, .Mars Odyssey was launched to orbit Mars. It v ill analyze. Mars’ surface and look for water underground. Such probes may pave the way for human explorers. A human mission to Mars would take about two years. The travelers would explore Mars for months, extracting Oxygen from Mars’ carbon dioxide atmosphere. They might find fossils, actual proof of other life in the universe.

No one knows what lies in the future. Yet, as the story of flight has shown, tomorrow will be exciting as dreams become reality.

Parachute Landing

In this artist’s concept, a Mars landing module glides down from a spacecraft by parachute. After land ng, the astronauts would explore the planet by a rover vehicle and study its potential for supporting human life.

< Tales Told by Rocks

A mission specialist in geology examines a rock she has picked up on Mars. Scientists exploring the planet will look for clues to possible early life in rocks. If any life forms have existed, the best evidence would be found in fossils.

▼ Taking a Look

Iwo explorers stop their vehicle to get out and look at robot lander craft sent to Mars years before. No plans now exist for a human mission to Mars. Yet experts hope such a mission will take place perhaps in the next 20 years.

Fun Fact: Pure Fiction

In 1898, British author H. G Wells wrote the Worofthe Worlds, з novel about creatures from Mars invading Earth. ln 1938,the story was broadcast on radio. lt was so convincing, many believed the invasion was real1

Fun Fact: Sightseeing on Mars

Visitors to Mars will see remarkable things. Mars has a volcano three times taller than Mount Everest and a huge canyon. It is four times deeper and ten times longer than the Grand Canyon.

RULE

[1] Bendix Trophy

One of the top racing prizes, the Bendix Trophy was first awarded in 1931.lt was given to the winner of the Bendix Transcontinental Race between Los Angeles and Cleveland.

[2] It’s a Car, It’s a Plane

Called the "Flying Car," a 1947 Convair Model 118 ConAirCar consisted of a two – seater car and an aircraft frame with a 180 horsepower engine. Designed for convenient personal use, it was meant to fly and drive. Unfortunately, it ran out of gas in flight and crashed.

[3] R-7 Rocket

The 100-foot-high Soviet R-7 rocket which launched Sputnik was the biggest rocket in existence at the time. At liftoff, its five powerful rocket engines generated about 900,000 pounds of thrust, 16 times as much as the V-2.

[4] Apollo 11 Launch

Seconds after ignition, Apollo 11 rises as a tower of flames pours from Saturn V’s engines. In 27. minutes, the first stage boosted the craft 35 miles above Earth, traveling 6,000 miles an hour. Then the second stage fired.