Wright Brothers

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The Wright Brothers

The Wright Brothers were two intelligent young men at an early age. Orville and Wilbur’s parents were extremely education oriented. Two libraries in their house supplied them with knowledge at the start of their lives. Orville once said We were lucky enough to grow up in an environment where there was always much encouragement to children to pursue intellectual interests; to investigate whatever aroused curiosity They thought highly of mechanics even in childhood. They sometimes sold mechanical toys for pocket money. They formed the Wright Bicycle Company in 1892.

In 1894, their interest in flying was inspired by the gliding flights of the German pioneer Lilienthal. They studied all that was known on the subject at that time. Orville said that soaring birds kept control of the flight by flexing the tips of their wings. Beginning with a biplane kite in 1899, they began on what was to become a difficult journey to success. They were going to follow a careful scientific approach to flight. They first built a practical wind tunnel, tested more than 200 wing shapes and sizes, and decided to construct and test many gliders before attempting powered flight. From the results of their tests, the brothers made the first reliable tables of air pressures on curved surfaces. These tables made it possible for them to design a machine that could fly. In 1901 and 1902, they chose the sand dunes of Kill Devil Hill, North Carolina, because of its constant winds and soft sands to prevent injuries. Also, the Weather Bureau, now the National Weather Service, told them that this area would be fine for testing. Through these experiences they taught themselves to fly, control flight altitudes, and develop the parameters for their powered machines. This glider could carry one person and it measured 16 feet from wing tip to wing tip. Now, they had a bigger glider to go back to Kitty Hawk. They showed that they could control sidewise ...