Big History in Flight


Book Description

With text and full-spread illustrations, "Big History in Flight" presents state-of-the-art theories from science and history concerning flight. Milestones and thresholds of life's adaptations to move through the atmosphere are presented alongside the physical principles of fluid dynamics, gravity, buoyancy, and other scientific ideas. Human achievements in flight are shown as they occur, within an evolving political, social, economic landscape; feedback loops which develop between aviation enthusiasts and industrial interests intensify during times of war.Placing these events in chronological order, authors Curtis and Serio explore the monumental journey of humans taking to the sky in a Big Picture format. Beginning with the Big Bang and following this epic narrative through to the present day, human achievement and ingenuity are placed against the vast and fascinating backdrop of the expanding universe.




Taking to the Air


Book Description

The possibilities of flight have long fascinated us. Each innovation captivated a broad public, from those who gathered to witness winged medieval visionaries jumping from towers, to those who tuned in to watch the moon landings. Throughout history, the visibility of airborne objects from the ground has made for a spectacle of flight, with sizeable crowds gathering for eighteenth-century balloon launches and early twentieth-century air shows. Taking to the Air tells the history of flight through the eye of the spectator and, later, the passenger. Focusing on moments of great cultural impact, this book is a visual celebration of the wonder of flight, based on the large and diverse collection of print imagery held by the British Library. It is a study of how flight has been pictured through time.




Femininity in Flight


Book Description

'Femininity in Flight' considers flight attendants as cultural icons, looking at how attendants redeployed the 'glamourization' used to sell air travel to campaign for professional respect, higher wages, and women's rights.




History of Flight Coloring Book


Book Description

Forty-seven accurate drawings of man's most important flying achievements. 18th-century balloons, 19th-century dirigibles, the Spirit of St. Louis, fighters, bombers, the Concorde, and the Space Shuttle.




Taking Flight


Book Description

The invention of flight represents the culmination of centuries of thought and desire. Kites and rockets sparked our collective imagination. Then the balloon gave humanity its first experience aloft, though at the mercy of the winds. The steerable airship that followed had more practicality, yet a number of insurmountable limitations. But the airplane truly launched the Aerial Age, and its subsequent impact--from the vantage of a century after the Wright Brother's historic flight on December 17, 1903--has been extraordinary. Richard Hallion, a distinguished international authority on aviation, offers a bold new examination of aircraft history, stressing its global roots. The result is an interpretive history of uncommon sweep, complexity, and warmth. Taking care to place each technological advance in the context of its own period as well as that of the evolving era of air travel, this ground-breaking work follows the pre-history of flight, the work of balloon and airship advocates, fruitless early attempts to invent the airplane, the Wright brothers and other pioneers, the impact of air power on the outcome of World War I, and finally the transfer of prophecy into practice as flight came to play an ever-more important role in world affairs, both military and civil. Making extensive use of extracts from the journals, diaries, and memoirs of the pioneers themselves, and interspersing them with a wide range or rare photographs and drawings, Taking Flight leads readers to the laboratories and airfields where aircraft were conceived and tested. Forcefully yet gracefully written in rich detail and with thorough documentation, this book is certain to be the standard reference for years to come on how humanity came to take to the sky, and what the Aerial Age has meant to the world since da Vinci's first fantastical designs.




City of Flight


Book Description




Big History


Book Description

An epic for our time, Big History begins when the universe is no more than a single point the size of an atom, squeezed together in unimaginable density, and ends with a twenty-first-century planet inhabited by 6.1 billion people. Its a story that takes in prehistoric geology, human evolution, the agrarian age, the Black Death, the voyages of Columbus, the industrial revolution, and global warming. Historian Cynthia Brown visits the Vikings, the Mayas and Aztecs, the Incas, the Mongol empire, and the Islamic heartlands. Along the way she considers topics as varied as cell formation, population growth, global disparities, and illiteracy, creating a stunning synthesis of historical and scientific knowledge of humanity and the earth we inhabit.Big History represents a new kind of history, one that skillfully interweaves historical knowledge and cutting-edge science. In an age of global warming, when the fate of the earth hangs in the balance, scientific advances permit us to see the universe as never before, grasping the timescales that allow us to understand the history of mankind in the context of its ecological impact on the planet. Cynthia Browns lucid, accessible narrative is the first popularization of this innovative new field of study, as thrilling as it is ambitious.




Cleared for Takeoff


Book Description

All of aviation's dangerous, exciting, and most courageous moments are featured within this stunning compendium on flight. Packed with stories of heroic and innovative pioneers, fascinating profiles of remarkable planes from Spitfires to space shuttles, and how-to instructions for making everything from origami helicopters to bottle rockets—all accompanied by sensational photographs, illustrations, and diagrams—Cleared for Takeoff promises to astonish, entertain, and fire the imaginations of everyone with their head in the clouds.




Milestones of Flight


Book Description

Experience the history of flight with the world-class aviation collection at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, which attracts millions and millions of visitors each year in Washington, D.C.From the moment the Wright Brothers first took flight in 1903 to the modern-day reliance on stealth aircraft and drones, there have been significant advances made in aviation. Milestones of Flight celebrates each era of advancements by showcasing the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's world-class aircraft collection. Authored by Dr. Robert van der Linden, a leading expert on aviation and Chairman of the Aeronautics Department at the NASM, this book is a stunning profile of the advancements in flight from decade to decade, illustrated with beautiful, large-scale photography and enhanced with little-known facts, anecdotes, and insights from major players in the aviation industry.Climb inside the cockpit of the Spirit of St. Louis that Charles Lindbergh piloted solo across the Atlantic Ocean, making history. Contrast that with a Boeing B-29 Superfortress, the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb. The full-page photos of each milestone-making aircraft are accompanied by timelines to showcase related aircraft as well as sidebars with interesting and little-known facts, stories, and related research.Milestone categories include:- Era of Early Flight- World War I First Fighters- Long-Range Record-Setting Flight- Popular Flight- First Commercial Airliners- World War II Aircraft- Experimental Flight- Cold War Military/Korean Conflict Aircraft- Commercial Jets- Modern Military AircraftWhat will the next milestone be?




Aircraft


Book Description

Take an action-packed flight through the history of aircraft and discover the intrepid pioneers who made a dream reality Uncover the engineering behind more than 800 aircraft models, from military jets to commercial planes. This visual history book captures the fascinating story of airplanes and aviation, and how their groundbreaking discovery has influenced the 21st Century. Inside the pages of this aircraft book, you’ll discover: • The history of military and commercial aircraft from all over the world, decade by decade, to the present day in stunning visual detail • Comprehensive catalogs highlight the most important aircraft of each period along with their specifications and unique features • Showcases on particularly celebrated aircraft – such as the Supermarine Spitfire and Concorde – in beautifully photographed “virtual tour” features • The stories of the engineers and manufacturers that created marques like Boeing and Airbus Take to the skies Modern flight has opened the world up to new opportunities and paved the way for the development of advanced research and technology. But, what made it so groundbreaking? This book uncovers the stories behind the first airplane models, the development of flight, and brings you to present-day marvels such as the Gypsy Moth and Supermarine Spitfire. The Aircraft Book is filled with stats, facts, and photographs that create a visual tour and allows you to see inside key commercial and military aircraft models from the exterior to the cockpit. Aviation enthusiasts will also be captivated by the manufacturer of aircraft engines and how famous models like Boeing and Lockheed became household names. Love history? Discover even more with DK! DK's The Definitive Visual History series is an iconic celebration of design and history. Packed with fascinating facts and statistics, these high-quality visual guides cover everything from history and notable designs to the people and technology that made it possible. Books in this series include The Car Book, The Train Book, The Tank Book, and so much more.