Day: August 4, 2017

Engineering, TechnologyLeave a comment

#Airbus Perlan II glider aims for new heights and rare scientific data – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

The Airbus-sponsored Perlan II mission is in Argentina for a second year of flight operations in a bid to set a new glider altitude record by riding so-called “mountain waves” created by powerful gusts of wind over the Andes Mountains. The team hopes to reach a height of 16,700 metres using a custom-built pressurized sailplane – breaking the current glider record set by Perlan I in 2006 – while also gathering valuable scientific data on high altitude flight and climate change. Click on the graphic for an expanded view. Continue reading #Airbus Perlan II glider aims for new heights and rare scientific data – an annotated infographic

Engineering, TechnologyLeave a comment

Voyager Interstellar Mission – the 40th anniversary – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

Later this month it will be the 40th anniversary of the Voyager Interstellar Mission launch. Voyagers 1 and 2 were launched in August 1977 to take advantage of a favourable alignment of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. The two spacecraft – sent in opposite directions – have been exploring interstellar space ever since. Voyager 1 and 2 have explored all the giant planets of our outer solar system, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune; 48 of their moons; and the unique system of rings and magnetic fields those planets possess. By the time of the anniversary, Voyager 1 will have traveled … Continue reading Voyager Interstellar Mission – the 40th anniversary – an annotated infographic