Hey there! Today, we’re going to learn about how different things fly, starting with airplanes. Airplanes have wings, but they don’t flap like a bird’s wings. Instead, they use engines to move forward. This forward movement is called thrust. As the airplane speeds up, the wings help it lift off the ground. The wings are shaped in a special way, with a flat bottom and a curved top. This shape makes the air move faster over the top than underneath, creating lift, which helps the airplane rise into the sky.
Hot air balloons are another fascinating flying machine. They don’t have engines like airplanes. Instead, they use hot air to float. When the air inside the balloon is heated, the molecules spread out and become less dense than the cooler air outside. This makes the balloon rise. To come back down, the pilot lets some hot air out, allowing cooler air to fill the balloon, making it sink gently to the ground.
Helicopters fly differently from airplanes and hot air balloons. They have spinning blades on top that act like a giant fan. These blades push air down, allowing the helicopter to lift off the ground. On Mars, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter had to be specially designed because Mars has much less air than Earth. It has long, fast-spinning blades to make the most of the thin Martian atmosphere.
Rockets are powerful flying machines that can travel into space. They work by pushing off the ground with a huge force created by burning fuel. This force is strong enough to overcome Earth’s gravity and send the rocket into space. Rockets are made of different parts called stages, which fall away as they run out of fuel, making the rocket lighter and easier to fly.
Not all flying things are machines. Many animals can fly too! Birds, insects, and bats all have wings, but they use them in different ways. For example, albatrosses have long wings to soar over oceans, while bees have short wings to hop from flower to flower. Penguins have wings too, but they use them to swim underwater instead of flying in the air.
Flying is an amazing feat, whether it’s done by machines or animals. Understanding how different things fly can make them less mysterious and even less scary. So next time you see an airplane, a hot air balloon, or a bird, you’ll know a little more about how they manage to soar through the sky!
Make Your Own Paper Airplane: Gather some paper and try making your own paper airplane. Experiment with different wing shapes and sizes. Does a plane with bigger wings fly better? What happens if you make the wings more curved? Try flying your airplane outside or in a big room and see how far it can go. Think about how the shape of the wings affects how well it flies.
Hot Air Balloon Experiment: With the help of an adult, fill a small plastic bag with warm air using a hairdryer. Watch how the bag rises when filled with warm air and sinks when the air cools down. Discuss why the bag rises and falls, and relate it to how hot air balloons work. What do you think would happen if the air inside the balloon was even hotter?
Observe and Draw Flying Animals: Go outside or look out your window and observe birds or insects flying. Notice how they use their wings. Draw a picture of your favorite flying animal and label the parts that help it fly. Think about how their wings are different from airplane wings. How do you think their wing shape helps them fly in their environment?
