Flight
Flight looks effortless from the ground, but staying in the air means constantly balancing forces, controlling motion and using energy. Explore how birds, insects, balloons, aeroplanes and helicopters solve the same problem in completely different ways.
Why Anything Can Fly
Every flying thing must manage four basic forces: lift, weight, thrust and drag.
Birds: Flight Before Machines
Birds evolved light skeletons, feathers and powerful muscles long before humans built aircraft.
Insects and Tiny Flyers
Small wings operate in air differently from large ones, allowing insects to hover, dart and turn with astonishing speed.
Humans Learn to Fly
Human flight began with lighter-than-air balloons, then moved toward controlled gliding and powered aircraft.
Inside a Modern Aeroplane
A passenger jet is a carefully balanced system of wings, engines, controls, hydraulics, electronics and pressure.
Fast, High and Extreme
The faster and higher an aircraft flies, the more air itself begins to behave differently.
Helicopters and Hovering
Helicopters create lift by spinning wings through the air instead of moving the whole aircraft forward first.
Weather in the Sky
Pilots fly inside an atmosphere that is moving, heating, cooling and sometimes becoming violent.
Finding the Way Safely
Modern flight depends on navigation, communication and layers of systems designed to prevent one mistake becoming a disaster.
The Future of Flight
Aviation is experimenting with quieter propulsion, smarter aircraft and new ways to move through crowded skies.