PARACHUTESBy: Claire/ Lisa Nixon

Introduction

Who were some of the first inventors?

Why are parachutes designed the way they are?

What can parachutes be used for today?

How reliable are parachutes?

The First Sketch

The first sketch of a parachute was found in a notebook of Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo’s design was a pyramid of sealed linen cloth, held open with wooden poles .

This design lacked a harness. Leonardo, was not able to

test this parachute, because his concept was so advanced for the time he was living in.

Leonardo da Vinci

Born on April 15th, 1452 in Tuscan, Italy.

Scientist, inventor, and artist.

Leonardo is most famously known for the Mona Lisa, and The Last Supper.

Died in France on May 2, 1519.

Adrian Nicholas

Born on March 4th, 1962,and died on September 17th, 2005.

Was able to prove that Leonardo’s sketch of a parachute could work.

Held a world record for longest sky dive, and furthest human flight.

He jumped out at 35, 850 feet, covering 10 miles.

Died due to parachute complications in Holland.

Adrian Nicholas tested Leonardo’s sketch over Mpumalanga province of South Africa.

The parachute weighed 187 pounds He descended 7,000 feet with

Leonardo’s design and then cut himself free.

Nicholas then descended the remaining 3,000 feet with a modern parachute, to ensure that he was not crushed with Leonardo’s design.

Quote by Nicholas:"It took one of the greatest minds who ever lived to design it, but it took 500 years to find a man with a brain small enough to actually go and fly it.”

Testing Leonardo’s Theory

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQmiT1R53Cw

Louis-Sebastien Lenormand

Born in France on May 25,1757. Louis was a French inventor, and physicist. He was believed to be the first man to use a parachute. Louis-Sebastien’s parachutes were intended for short falls. His first was a jump was from a tree. His second jump, was from the tower of the Montpellier

observatory, in France. The parachute he used was fourteen feet long. He thought that parachutes could be used by people who

were trapped in burning buildings.

Louis-Sebastien Lenormand Cont.

André-Jacques Garnerin

Born in Paris, on January 31,1769. Appointed official aeronaut of France. The first man to ascend from a parachute at a high altitude. Garnerin ascended in a basket using a parachute, and hot air

balloon. He was accompanied by, Citoyenne Henri. The flight took place 3,200 feet above Parc Monceau, Paris. The parachute that he used, was made of silk. Citoyenne Henri, was considered the first woman to

parachute in a basket.

André-Jacques Garnerin Cont.

André-Jacques Garnerin Cont.

Jean-Pierre Blanchard 

Born on July 4,1753 in Les Andelys, France. The first man to jump from a hot air balloon, using only a parachute. He was the first person to make balloon flights over North America,

Germany, Belgium, and Poland. Jean-Pierre was also the first man to cross the English Channel in a got

air balloon. He is given credit, as being the first to deliver air mail. Jean-Pierre,

carried a letter for President George Washington, from Pennsylvania to New Jersey.

In February 1808, while in flight he suffered a heart attack. He fell more than 50 feet. Jean-Pierre could not recover from his fall and died on March 7, 1809.

Jean-Pierre Blanchard Cont.

Dome Parachute Design

Also called a jellyfish chute. This round design is used

to make parachutes more stable.

Dome parachutes can either be steerable or non-steerable.

Used in medical missions. Military operations. Parasailing.

Dome parachutes

Square Parachute Design

Also called ram-air canopies.

Used mainly by skydivers as a sport.

More widely used compared to a dome parachute.

Square Parachutes

Parachute Uses

Sports NASA Military missions Skydiving

Sports

Speed skydiving. Formation skydiving. Canopy formation. Jumping from space. Drag racing.

Space Jump

Felix Baumgartner 43 years old Grew up in Salzburg, Austria

24 miles 4 minutes 834 mph First person to break the speed

of sound Sponsored by Redbull Quote by Felix:“I know the whole

world is watching, and I wish the whole world could see what I see. Sometimes you have to go up really high to understand how small you really are.”http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/4940

9914#49409914

Reliability

Not all parachutes are 100% reliable. Malfunctions usually happen because a parachute was not

packed properly, or the timing that the parachute is deployed is not exact.

Parachutes must be packaged by certified parachute riggers every 180 days.

Altimeters must be worn to show altitude. According to USPA, the U.S. was reported to have 19

skydiving fatalities, and 3.1 million people were estimated for jumps in 2012.

Skydive Newport

Started offering jumps to the public in 1999.

$210 for students $220 for general tickets For video and pictures, it

will cost $95 more. They are open April 1st to

mid October. Fall at speeds of 120 mph 401-845-0393

www.skydivenewport.com

Picture References

"82nd Airborne Division." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 May 2014. Web. 06 Apr. 2014. Kautter, David J., and Andrew R. Zank. "Kogod Now » Golden Parachutes & Congress."Kogod

Now. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2014. "Leonardo Da Vinci Flying Machine!- The Flight of Genius!" Leonardo Da Vinci Flying Machine!

The Flight of Genius! N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Apr. 2014. "Legends of the Months." HeadStuff. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2014. "News." Top Skydiver Died after Safety Chute Thought He Was in Freefall. N.p., n.d. Web. 10

Apr. 2014. "Dr. Caligari's Cabinet." : Don't You People Ever Wanna Go to Bed? N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr.

2014. "Goa Archives - Treklocations." Treklocations. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. "How Products Are Made." How Parachute Is Made. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. "Felix Baumgartner Flies in His Zenith Stratos Watch." The Jewellery Editor. N.p., n.d. Web. 19

Apr. 2014.

References

"Parachute." Leonardo Da Vinci -. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2014. "Adrian Nicholas Proves Da Vinci Chute Works." : Skydiving Articles. N.p., n.d. Web. 10

Apr. 2014. BBC News. BBC, 27 June 2000. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. Hartley-Brewer, Julia. "Skydiver Proves Da Vinci Chute Works." The Guardian. Guardian

News and Media, 27 June 2000. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. "Leonardo Da Vinci First Parachute." YouTube. YouTube, 28 Feb. 2012. Web. 11 Apr.

2014. "Lenormand Invents "Le Parachute"" Popular Mechanics. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. “Spartacus Educational." Spartacus Educational. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2014 "Types Of Parachute." Types Of Parachute. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. "Fearless Felix Jumps from Edge of Space." NBCNews.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.