Parabola

Well, the only way to experience zero g on Earth is actually with parabolic flight, weightless flight.

In particular, parabolic aircraft flights, for both scientists and engineers, provide a good means of access to microgravity.

Those shapes are parabolas.

Select the directrix of the new parabola...

So we did a second parabola.

Parabola by Directrix Focus

A parabola defined by its directrix and focus

Construct a parabola with this directrix

Select the focus of the new parabola...

I had just taken trigonometry in high school, I learned about the parabola and how it could concentrate rays of light to a single focus.

Vertical Parabola by Three Points

We had a press conference, we announced our intent to do one zero g parabola, give him 25 seconds of zero g.

A vertical parabola constructed through three points

Construct a parabola through this point

Select a point for the new parabola to go through...

Both radars are supported from a 34 m parabolic antenna.

They take all the parallel incoming rays and focus it to a single spot.

(a) Radars with mechanically controlled beam direction using parabolic reflector antennas.

Both radars are supported from a 34 m parabolic antenna.

Both are supported from a 34 m parabolic antenna.

They have to track the sun, because they have to be pointing directly at the sun.

Only objects being in the actual field of view given by the mechanical direction of the parabolic reflector antenna can be detected and measured

And after that first parabola, you know, the doc said everything is great. He was smiling, and we said go.

So the robot is obviously capable of executing any curve trajectory.

So on the left, you see Daniel throwing this robot up into the air.

We looked at a way to break up a parabola into individual petals that would track.

Pilots to the starting line. Pilots to the starting line.

(a) Radars with mechanically controlled beam direction using parabolic reflector antennas.

The flight body was released from a helicopter at high altitude and automatically landed at the test site after gliding through the air.

B. Spectrum UV mission an international ultraviolet laboratory 20 24 5

B. Spectrum UV mission an internationl ultraviolet laboratory

A curve's a curve, a plane's a plane, and the two won't mix.

Only objects in the actual field of view given by the mechanical direction of the parabolic reflector antenna can be detected and measured

Each flying creature

Here are some fun images. Here's Burt Rutan and my good friend Greg Meronek inside a zero gravity people think a zero gravity room, there's a switch on there that turns it off but it's actually parabolic flight of an airplane.

Flying Things

Use of X ray machines at all of the country's airports and of canine units to detect explosives and drugs.

This was a fly by wire. It has wings.

If an object is predicted to pass through a box measuring 25 km x 5 km x 5 km oriented along the flight path of the United States Space Shuttle, the SSN sensor network intensifies its tracking of the potential risk object.

For example, if an object is predicted to pass through a box measuring 5 km x 25 km x 5 km oriented along the flight path of the United States Space Shuttle, the SSN sensor network intensifies its tracking of the potential risk object.

The Spectrum X Gamma mission will conduct multiple experiments in a broad wavelength range from ultraviolet through Grays to gamma rays.

The regulation put forward that it is prohibited to fly kites, balloons, Kongming lanterns, aircrafts and other floating objects in the air and small aircrafts within the scope of 500 meters from high speed railway power line conductors on both sides.

Near Earth object space mission preparation phase II Near Earth object Mission Advisory Panel

reported radar evidence of unidentified flying objects