flight

Hypersonic vehicles are perhaps a dream of the future, but if they have a chance of happening, research is important to develop materials that will handle...

In this activity, students explore how flight has developed over time with discussion about trends and future possibilities. By the end of this activity, students should...

In this activity, students explore the importance of wing shape and size and how this determines the flight capabilities of birds and planes. By the end...

In this activity, students explore the incredible flight of a special bird known as E7 to learn about the migratory flight of bar-tailed godwits from New...

In this activity, students will learn about some kite history and how kites fly before making and flying a kite themselves. By the end of this...

In this activity, students handcraft a glider from balsa wood. In the process, they learn about aerofoil wing shape, glider parts and terminology. They experiment with...

In this activity, students learn how to make an aerofoil and to make and fly paper planes. In the process, they learn about aerofoil wing shape...

In this activity, students discuss what things can fly and how this happens. They work towards identifying some key characteristics of flight. By the end of...

Position: Post-doctoral researcher, Conservation Ecology Group, The University of Groningen (formerly a PhD student at Massey University). Field: Ornithology Jesse Conklin spends his time researching things...

Position: Associate Professor, School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University. Field: Ornithology. Dr Phil Battley lectures at Massey University. He combines teaching zoology to students, doing...

All flying objects have some things in common. For some things, it is easy to decide if they are flying or not – a bird, a...

Hang-gliders are unpowered aircraft. They maintain flight by employing a flying surface (wing) called an aerofoil. While powered aircraft use their own power source (motor and...

Gliders and kites both have wings to generate lift. A glider’s wings are aerofoils. Well made kites are also aerofoil wings, which gives them lift. Gliders...

People have always tried to imitate birds. People in legends and fairytales have been able to magically fly, and ancient Chinese, Persians, Romans, Arabs, monks, scholars,...

People have long had an obsession with flight. Characters from legends and fairy tales often have the surprising ability to take off from the solid Earth...

One of the requirements for heavier-than-air flying machines is a structure that combines strength with light weight. This is true for birds as well as planes....

Wing shapes and sizes of both birds and planes determine how they might perform or what they might be capable of (for example, gliding, sustained high...

In this activity, students use an online interactive or paper-based graphic organiser to consider how wing size and shape influences the specific flight capabilities of both...

You can tell a great deal about how a bird lives or what a plane has been designed for just from its wing shape and size....

For a plane or bird to fly, its wings must produce enough lift to equal its weight. Most wings used in flight are a special shape...

For thousands of years, people have wanted to fly. Our legends and fairy tales are full of humans and animals that can fly – effortlessly gliding...

Research on godwit migration involves tracking or following the flight path of the birds. Scientists like Dr Phil Battley and Dr Jesse Conklin from Massey University...

Bar-tailed godwits can fly about 12,000 km at one time – further than any other known bird. This recent discovery excited ornithologists around the world. Dr...

Have you ever wanted to fly? To soar above valleys and mountains, cities and oceans, feeling the wind whipping against your face? Flight has fascinated humans...