| Day 4: Bird Day Instructor: Phil Rossoni Course: Walkalong Gliders Date: July 1st, 2004 Location: Museum of Science, Boston |
 |
| On the fourth day of class we will study bird flight. Birds have always been an inspiration for manned flight. We will build a bird glider. Study of Bird Flight: Birds make flying look easy, but what sorts of challenges do they face? We'll discover that anybody, man or bird, faces the same challenges taking off, staying in the air and landing. We'll learn about the two ways birds fly: flapping and soaring flight. Walkalong gliders can't flap, but they can soar! How do birds change their wings to better meet the challenges of taking off, flying and landing? References: Life of Birds: http://www.pbs.org/lifeofbirds/ Birdflight : an illustrated study of birds' aerial mastery by Robert Burton (book) Follow Osprey Migrations via Satellite: http://www.birdsofprey.org/migration.htm Making a Bird Glider: We will make a bird glider. The design flies too fast to be used as a walkalong glider, but you can try! Copyright Phil Rossoni, 6/3/2004 |