Bonus Aviation Projects!

Thanks so much for joining me for the teleclass! On this page you'll find the videos for the experiments we covered in class, plus a few extras. Enjoy!

Click Herescience-experiment to continue with Aviation Science in the Ultimate Science Curriculum!

Continue the learning and fun by learning more in depth about airplanes, navigation, runways and space ships, and also get a peek at how electronics, engines, radios, storms, gyroscopes, wing design all work together to form the field of aviation! By the end of this course, you will not only have a fantastic foundation in aerodynamics and aeronautics, but also have built your very own flyers, gliders, and had two complete lessons right from home on how to fly a real airplane with a certified flight instructor! Make your kids' year great and get access to dozens of hands-on, fun science activities!

First Flight Lesson

We’re going to learn how to fly an airplane from a certified flight instructor.  He’s going to walk you through every step, from pre-flight to take-off to landing.  You’ll hear the radio transmissions from other aircraft flying in the area, how the control tower directs traffic, and more.  We’ve used a special microphone inside the cockpit to cut down on the engine noise (which actually was rigged up to only record when it heard voice sounds), so the sound might seem different than you expected

You can download an aviation map (called a "sectional") for your part of the US here.

Ping Pong Funnel

As you blow into the funnel, the air under the ball moves faster than the other air surrounding the ball, which generates an area of lower air pressure. The pressure under the ball is therefore lower than the surrounding air which is, by comparison, at a higher pressure. This higher pressure pushes the ball back into the funnel, no matter how hard you blow or which way you hold the funnel. The harder you blow, the more stuck the ball becomes.

Materials:

  • ping pong ball
  • funnel

Balsa Flyer

This video shows how to use a balsa airplane to show what all the parts (rudder, wings, elevator, fuselage) are for.  You can pick one up for a few dollars, usually at a toy store, or make your own.

Materials:

Nakamura Lock Flyer

The best thing about this plane it that it shows you how to fold an airplane without using tape. Notice how the wings of this airplane are different than the stunt plane designs. Can you carry a jelly bean passenger safely without losing them or crashing the airplane during flight?

Materials:

  • sheet of paper
  • jelly bean or raisin

Tweaking your Airplanes

The trick to any paper airplane, be it a dart, stunt, or glider, is in the tweaking.  In order to turn a disappointing nose-diver into a stellar barrel-roller, you’ll need to pay close attention to your dihedral angle (angle the wings make with the horizon) and elevator angle (pinching up or down to the tail section).

Materials:

  • one paper airplane that doesn't fly well

Stunt Flyer

The best, all purpose, lazy afternoon loop-and-corkscrew stunt flying machine that we’ve found. This plane can easily go straight, or curve in a loop, or do a barrel roll, or boomerang back to you…and it can even do the bat maneuver (nose-up-nose-down-nose-up-nose-down-nose-up-nose-down…) with the right kind of tweaking. Spend extra time on those back elevators and you’ll get a plane worthy of warm drafts.

Materials:

  • sheet of paper

Wind Tunnel

Find the Center of Pressure (CP) by doing the opposite: Using a blow-dryer set to low-heat so you don’t scorch your airplane, blast a jet of air up toward the ceiling. Put your airplane in the air jet and, using a pencil tip on the top side of your plane, find the point at which the airplane balances while in the airstream. Label this point “CP” for Center of Pressure. (Which one is closest to the nose?)