Watch the video below to gain a little background knowledge on the Wright brothers and what exactly they did.
The Wright brothers were the first people to take flight, and they did so right here in North Carolina! It was a perilous task and it took years of work... but the Wright brothers mastered it!
How did it work?
Why Kitty Hawk?
Kitty Hawk provided just enough wind so that the wings of the aircraft could be supported as it glided. Kitty Hawk was also a rather private place where the brothers could perform trial and error without receiving judgement or having to provide explanations of errors. |
How did the Wright flyer stay in the air?
The plane had to be heavy enough to hold a person but it had to be light enough and its weight had to be evenly distributed enough so it could be lifted by the air. It wasn't only air that was lifting it though! The brothers found a way to power their aircraft and keep the air moving while they gilded. What exactly is the Wright brothers' wind tunnel?
The wind tunnel is a contraption the brothers created to test how the force of wind acts on different objects that are shaped in different ways. This gave the brothers an idea of what kinds of shapes they needed to use on their plane! |
Brain Check...
What is different about the Wright Brothers' flyer and airplanes we see today?
Do they have anything in common?
What is different about the Wright Brothers' flyer and airplanes we see today?
Do they have anything in common?
TRICKY WORDS:
marvels: things that fill the viewer with wonder
civilians: a person who is not a police officer or a person in the armed services (army, navy, marines...)
perilous: full of danger or risky
marvels: things that fill the viewer with wonder
civilians: a person who is not a police officer or a person in the armed services (army, navy, marines...)
perilous: full of danger or risky