To perform the manoeuvre of gliding downward against the breeze, utilizing both gravity and the wind, Eilmer employed an apparatus somewhat resembling a gliding bird. However being unable to balance himself forward and backwards, as does a bird by slight movements of his wings, head and legs, he would have needed a large tail to maintain equilibrium. Eilmer would have failed of true soaring flight in any event, b ...

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Eilmer of Malmesbury, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Eilmer, Eilmer of Malmesbury - The Flight, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Flight analysis, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Historical traditions, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Notes

Read more here: » Eilmer of Malmesbury: Encyclopedia II - Eilmer of Malmesbury - Flight analysis

Humanity's desire to fly probably dates to the first time prehistoric man observed birds, an observation illustrated in the legendary story of Daedalus and Icarus. Daedalus was trapped on the island of Minos, and so built wings out of feathers and wax for himself and his son. His son Icarus flew too close to the sun and the wax melted -- the wings were destroyed and he fell to the sea, and to his death. The legend was designed to be a cautionary tale about attempting to reach heaven, similar to the Tower of Babel story in The B ...

Including:

• Aviation history - Before the 20th century
• Aviation history - Lighter than air
• Aviation history - Toward better understanding
• Aviation history - Picking up the pace
• Aviation history - 1900 to 1914
• Aviation history - Langley
• Aviation history - The Wright Brothers
• Aviation history - Other early flights
• Aviation history - Lighter than air II
• Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I
• Aviation history - 1918 - 1939
• Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II
• Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War
• Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia - Aviation history

1010 - Events. The Ly Dynasty in Vietnam is established (or 1009). Viking explorer Thorfinn Karlsefni attempts to found a settlement in North America (approximate date). Persian poet Ferdowsi finishes writing The Shahnameh (Book of Kings). Umayyad caliph of Cordoba Hisham II is restored, succeeding Sulayman. Eilmer of Malmesbury attempts flight in a glider of his own construction. 1010 - Births. May 30 ...

Including:

• 1010 - Events
• 1010 - Births
• 1010 - Deaths

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Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, more generally known as Halley's Comet after Edmond Halley. The most standard pronunciation of "Halley" is [hæli] (IPA), to rhyme with "valley". The once-standard alternate pronunciation [heɪli] (to rhyme with "Bailey") led to rock and roll singer Bill Haley naming his band Bill Haley and the Comets. Comet Halley - Composition. The ...

Including:

• Comet Halley - Composition
• Comet Halley - Early history
• Comet Halley - Recent history
• Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia
• Comet Halley - Trivia
• Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

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The comet returned in 1835, 1910 and 1986. The 1910 approach was notable for several reasons: as well as being the first approach of which photographs exist, it was relatively close, making the comet a spectacular sight. Indeed, on 19 May, the comet transited the Sun's disk, and the Earth actually passed through its tail. At the time the comet's tail was known to contain poisonous cyanogen gas. The popular media picked up this fact and, over the pleas of astronomers, wove sensational tales of mass cyanide poisoning engulfing the planet. In reality the gas is so dilute that the world suffered no ...

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Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Recent history

See List of early flying machines and First flying machine. During the 9th century, the Muslim Moors Armen Firman and Abbas Qasim Ibn Firnas are known to have built and flown gliders. Eilmer of Malmesbury did the same in circa 1010, possibly inspired by the description in the story of Daedalus. Upon visiting China in the 13th century, Marco Polo brought back stories of human-carrying kites (which stay aloft via the wind's power but are technically tethered to the ground) and flying tops. "Pao Phu Tau" was a 4th century Chinese book containi ...

See also:

Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - Before the 20th century

Having perceived that the elements of the comet of 1682 were nearly the same as those of two comets which had appeared in 1531 (observed by Petrus Apianus) and 1607 (observed by Johannes Kepler in Prague), Halley concluded that all three comets were in fact the same object returning every 76 years (a period that has since been amended to every 75-76 years). After a rough estimate of the perturbations the comet would sustain from the attraction of the planets, he predicted its return for 1757. Halley's prediction of the comet's return proved ...

See also:

Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Early history

See List of early flying machines and First flying machine. Around 900 AD, the Moors Armen Firman and Abbas Qasim Ibn Firnas are known to have built and flown gliders. Eilmer of Malmesbury did the same around 1010 AD, inspired by the description in the story of Daedalus. Upon visiting China in the 13th century, Marco Polo brought back stories of human-carrying kites (which stay aloft via the wind's power but are technically tethered to the ground) and flying tops. "Pao Phu Tau" was a 4th century Chinese book containi ...

See also:

Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - Before the 20th century

In the beginning of the 21st century, subsonic aviation focused on eliminating the pilot in favor of remotely operated or completely autonomous vehicles. Several Unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs have been developed. In April 2001 the unmanned aircraft Global Hawk flew from Edwards AFB in the US to Australia non-stop and unrefuelled. This is the longest point-to-point flight ever undertaken by an unmanned aircraft, and took 23 hours and 23 minutes. In October 2003 the first totally autonomous flight across the Atlantic b ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1991-Future

Having perceived that the observed characteristics of the comet of 1682 were nearly the same as those of two comets which had appeared in 1531 (observed by Petrus Apianus) and 1607 (observed by Johannes Kepler in Prague), Halley concluded that all three comets were in fact the same object returning every 76 years (a period that has since been amended to every 75-76 years). After a rough estimate of the perturbations the comet would sustain from the attraction of the planets, he predicted its return for 1757. Halley's prediction of the comet' ...

See also:

Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Early history

Comet Halley returned to perihelion on the following dates. It is usually visible to the unaided eye for a few months around perihelion. 240 BC (1P/-239 K1) late 164 BC (1P/-163 U1) August 87 BC (1P/-86 Q1) October 12 BC (1P/-11 Q1) January AD 66 (1P/66 B1) March 141 (1P/141 F1) May 218 (1P/218 H1) April 295 (1P/295 J1) February 374 (1P/374 E1) June 451 (1P/451 L1) ...

See also:

Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia

World War II saw a drastic increase in the pace of aircraft development and production. All countries involved in the war stepped up production and development of aircraft and flight based weapon delivery systems, such as the German V-2 missile, and World War two saw the development of the first long range bomber, and the first jet fighter. The first functional jetplane which was the Heinkel He 178 (Germany), flown by Erich Warsitz in 1939. An earlier prototype was the Coanda-1910 that did a short flight in December 16, 1910. The firs ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II

Commercial Aviation took hold after World War II using mostly ex-military aircraft in the business of transporting people and goods. Within a few years many companies existed, with routes that criss-crossed North America, Europe and other parts of the world. This was accelerated due to the glut of heavy and super-heavy bomber airframes like the B-29 and Lancaster that could easily be converted into commercial aircraft. The DC-3 also made for easier and longer commercial flights. By 1952, the British state airline BOAC introduced into service ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War

The nucleus of Halley's comet is potato-shaped with dimensions around 8 by 8 by 16 kilometers. The density of the nucleus is between one tenth and one quarter the density of water. The nucleus is very dark, reflecting only around 4% of incident light. [1] The Giotto space probe found the comet's surface to be rich in carbon. Of the volume of material ejected by Halley, 80% was water, 10% carbon monoxide, and 2.5% a mix of methane and ammonia. Other hydrocarbons, iron, and sodium were detected in trace amounts. ...

See also:

Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Composition

Aviation history - Langley. With the success of the Aerodrome No. 5 and its follow-on No. 6, Langley started looking for funding to build a full-scale man-carrying version of his designs. He succeeded in winning $50,000 in funding from the government, perhaps spurred on by the recent opening of the Spanish-American War. Langley planned on building a scaled-up version known as the Aerodrome A, and started with the smaller Quarter-scale Aerodrome, which flew twice on June 18, 1901, and then aga ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1900 to 1914

The comet returned in 1835, 1910 and 1986. The 1910 approach was notable for several reasons: as well as being the first approach of which photographs exist, it was relatively close, making the comet a spectacular sight. Indeed, on 19 May, the comet transited the Sun's disk, and the Earth actually passed through its tail. This proved worrisome in some quarters, as the comet's tail was known to contain poisonous cyanogen gas. However, the gas is so dilute that there were ...

See also:

Comet Halley, Comet Halley - Composition, Comet Halley - Early history, Comet Halley - Recent history, Comet Halley - Dates of perihelia, Comet Halley - Trivia, Comet Halley - Halley's Comet in fiction

Read more here: » Comet Halley: Encyclopedia II - Comet Halley - Recent history

The years between World War I and World War II saw a large advancement in aircraft technology. Airplanes evolved from being constructed of mostly wood and canvas to being constructed almost entirely of aluminium. Engine development proceeded apace, with engines moving from in-line water cooled gasoline engines to rotary air cooled engines, with a commensurate increase in propulsive power. Pushing all of this forward were prizes for distance and speed records. For example Charles Lindbergh took the Orteig Prize of $25,000 for his solo ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1918 - 1939

Main article: World War I Aviation Almost as soon as they were invented, planes were drafted for military service. The first country to use planes for military purposes was Bulgaria, whose planes attacked and reconnoitred the Ottoman positions during the First Balkan War 1912-13. The first war to see major use of planes in offensive, defensive and reconnaissance capabilities was World War I. The Allies and Central Powers both used planes extensively. The most famous plane of the war is the Sopwith Camel; it was credited with more aerial victories than any other Allied plane, but was also notorious fo ...

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Aviation history, Aviation history - Before the 20th century, Aviation history - Lighter than air, Aviation history - Toward better understanding, Aviation history - Picking up the pace, Aviation history - 1900 to 1914, Aviation history - Langley, Aviation history - The Wright Brothers, Aviation history - Other early flights, Aviation history - Lighter than air II, Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I, Aviation history - 1918 - 1939, Aviation history - 1939-1945: World War II, Aviation history - 1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Aviation history - 1991-Future

Read more here: » Aviation history: Encyclopedia II - Aviation history - 1914 - 1918: World War I

Other than William's account of the flight, nothing has survived of Eilmer's lifetime work as a monk. The story of Eilmer's flight has been retold many times by medieval scholars, later encyclopaedists, and by early modern proponents of man-powered flight. Lynn White, the first modern scholar to research Eilmer's efforts in depth, mentions a few who have written about Eilmer over the years: Helinand of Froidmont, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Vincent of Beauvais, Roger Bacon, Ranulf Higden (who was the first to misname him "Oliver") and ...

See also:

Eilmer of Malmesbury, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Eilmer, Eilmer of Malmesbury - The Flight, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Flight analysis, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Historical traditions, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Notes

Read more here: » Eilmer of Malmesbury: Encyclopedia II - Eilmer of Malmesbury - Historical traditions

William records that, in Eilmer's youth, he had read and believed the Greek fable of Daedalus. Thus, "mistaking fable for truth, he might fly like Daedalus", Eilmer fixed wings to his hands and feet and took to flight from a tower of Malmesbury Abbey: "He was a man learned for those times, of ripe old age, and in his early youth had hazarded a deed of remarkable boldness. He had by some means, I scarcely know what, fastened wings to his hands and feet so that, mistaking fable for truth, he might fly like Daedalus, and, collectin ...

See also:

Eilmer of Malmesbury, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Eilmer, Eilmer of Malmesbury - The Flight, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Flight analysis, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Historical traditions, Eilmer of Malmesbury - Notes

Read more here: » Eilmer of Malmesbury: Encyclopedia II - Eilmer of Malmesbury - The Flight