Understanding the Aviation History, Present and Future (Research Paper Sample)

Aviation History, Present, and Future
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Aviation History, Present, and Future
In the wake of the global pandemic, the loss of social freedoms has been as gruesome as the death and infection toll. People have come to appreciate the things they took for granted, like getting on an airplane and trekking thousands of miles to a different location without so much to worry about. In other words, the role of aviation in social mobility has increasingly come under the spotlight in the past year or so. In the detailed history of the human race, the traits of creativity and innovation inexplicably stand out. Indeed, the human race went from using rudimentary stone tools to discovering fire and ultimately exploring other planets. One of the biggest manifestations of this innate element of creativity and innovation is the meteoric development of the aviation industry. According to Statista (2020), it is estimated that the commercial aviation industry entails over 30,000 aircraft. This represents a huge leap and meteoric rise in aircraft production and use. In this research, the history of aircraft from tower jumping to autonomous aircraft is disseminated. The report also looks at the current state of the aviation industry in the wake of the adverse effects of Covid-19. Ultimately, the future of aviation is delved into with an emphasis on reducing the carbon footprint of the aviation industry.
The History of Aviation
From the early examples of flying, such as kites and attempts at tower jumping, to supersonic and hypersonic flight by powered, heavier-than-air aircraft, it is discernible that the history of aviation spans more than two thousand years. The flying of kites originated in China hundreds of years ago and gradually spread across the globe (Laufer, 2016). It is indeed considered to be the first instance of human flight. Leonardo da Vinci's idea of flight in the 15th century was realized in a number of practical prototypes, but they were based on faulty science (Jakub, 2017). The hydrogen balloon was invented after the discovery of hydrogen gas in the 18th century. The Montgolfier brothers reinvented the hot-air balloon and conducted manned flights almost exactly at the same time (Austerfield, 2019). Similarly, physicists developed different theories of mechanics around the same time period. Fluid mechanics and Newton's laws of motion, in particular, contributed to the development of contemporary aerodynamics, which was pioneered by Sir George Cayley (Ackroyd, 2020). From the end of the 18th century, balloons, both free-flying and tethered, were used for military purposes, with the French government forming Balloon Companies during the Revolution. Experimentation with gliders laid the foundation for heavier-than-air craft, and advancements in propulsion systems and aerodynamics allowed guided, powered flight achievable for the very first time in the early twentieth century. By 1909, the modern airplane with its distinctive tail had been developed.
Tower jumping
People have attempted to fly by strapping birdlike wings, tightened cloaks, and other instruments to themselves since time immemorial, usually by jumping off a tower. One of the oldest known legends is that of Daedalus and Icarus, which emerged in the European Middle Ages and ancient Asia (Aviation, 2020). The concepts of lift, stabilization, and power were not well known at the time, and various attempts resulted in death or serious injury. Abbas ibn Firnas, an Andalusian scholar, is said to have taken a leap in Cordoba, Spain, by wrapping himself in vulture feathers and strapping two wings to his arms. It is said that Firbas flew a respectable distance before he landed, and this was due to his lack of a tail akin to birds.
Kites
It's conceivable that the kite was the first man-made aviation device. This was created in China by Mozi and Lu Ban, probably as early as the 5th century BC. Subsequent designs sometimes resembled actual and mythical flying insects, birds, and other beasts (Laufer, 2016). Some had strings and whistles attached to them so they could make music when soaring. Kites were used to calculate distances, test the wind, raise men, signal, communicate, and send messages. Indeed, Kites became a worldwide phenomenon thanks to Chinese ingenuity The kite developed into the warrior kite after its arrival in India, whereby a combative line was used to ground other kites.
Human-Carrying kites
According to Laufer (2016), human-carrying kites are said to have been widely used throughout early China for military and civil purposes, as well as a form of punishment. The prisoner Yuan Huangtou, a Chinese prince, made an early known flight in the 6th century AD. Following the invention of the kite in China around the seventh century AD, stories of man-carrying kites emerged in Japan. It is believed that there was once Japanese legislation prohibiting man-carrying kites.
Rotor Wings
According to Leishman (2018), the use of rotor wings for aviation purposes can be traced back to 400 BC in what is now referred to as the bamboo-copter. Notably, this is a Chinese toy that inspired a similar one that emerged in Europe during the 14th Century AD.
Hot Air Balloons
The Chinese have been privy to the knowledge that hot air rises since ancient times and used the knowledge to make a miniature hot air balloon recognized as a sky lantern (Austerfield, 2019). A sky lantern is made up of a paper balloon with a small lamp mounted underneath or just inside it. Traditionally, sky lanterns are released for entertainment as well as during celebrations. Such lanterns were established in China as early as the 3rd century BC. The military application of sky lanterns is credited to General Zhuge Liang, who is explained to have utilized them to intimidate enemy forces. There are also reports that hundreds of years before the 18th century, the Chinese solved the dilemma of aerial navigation with balloons.
Renaissance Period
Some scholars eventually discovered and established some of the fundamentals of rational aircraft design after Ibn Firnas's construction. The most recognizable of these was Leonardo da Vinci, whose work was obscure before 1797 and thus had little impact on inventions over the next three centuries (Jakub, 2017). His plans were logical, but they were not scientifically feasible. He did not take into account the amount of force required to move a flying object because he based his models on the flapping wings of a bird instead of just a propeller driven by an engine. He examined them, expecting certain aerodynamic principles. He realized that an object has the same amount of resistance to the air as the object does to the air. It took Isaac Newton until 1687 to write his third law of motion (NASA, 2015).
Leonardo published about and sketched numerous prototypes for flying machines and mechanisms from the late 15th century until 1505, such as parachutes in the shape of a wooden-framed pyramidal tent, fixed-wing gliders, ornithopters, rotorcraft, and a wind speed gauge (Jakub, 2017). His early prototypes involved ornithopters and rotorcraft that were powered by humans. However, he realized that this was impractical and switched to controlled gliding flight, sketching a few other designs that were driven by a spring. Jakub (2017) also explains that Leonardo Da Vinci once portrayed a flying machine he built out of starched linen, leather joints, and raw silk thongs that he called "the bird. “Tomorrow morning, on the second day of January 1496, I will make the thong and the attempt," he wrote in the Codex Atlanticus. In 1505, Leonardo or one of his students tried to fly from the summit of Monte Ceceri, according to one widely circulated but probably fictional account.
The Beginning of Modern Aviation Theories
Francesco Lana de Terzi presented a report in 1670 proposing that lighter-than-air travel could be achieved by using copper foil spheres holding a vacuum, which would be lighter than the diverted air to propel an airship (Fairfield, 2020). His concept was technically sound, but it was impossible to implement because the surrounding air pressure would destroy the spheres. The concept of someone leveraging a vacuum to generate lift is currently referred to as a vacuum airship, but it is still impractical with existing materials. In 1709, Bartolomeu de Gusmao provided King John V of Portugal with a proposal requesting assistance for his development of an airship, wherein he showed full optimism (Manresa, 2020). The device's public test, scheduled for June 24, 1709, did not happen. Gusmao, as per historical accounts, seems to have conducted a number of less optimistic tests with this device which included descending from eminences. Gusmao was most likely using the idea behind the device at a public demonstration he presented before the Court on August 8, 1709, because he used combustion to catapult a ball to the roof.
For ballooning and aviation, 1783 was a watershed year. Five aviation firsts were accomplished in France between June 4 and December 1 (PBS, 2020). The Montgolfier brothers debuted their autonomous hot air balloon in Annonay, France, on June 4th. From the Champ de Mars in Paris, Jacques Charles and the Robert brothers unveiled the first autonomous hydrogen-filled balloon in the world on August 27. At the Folie Titon in Paris, the Montgolfiers conducted the first manned flight, which was a fastened balloon with people on it, on October 19th. The pilots w...