Would Icarus' wings fly in Earth's atmosphere and moon gravity?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the feasibility of Icarus' wings generating sufficient lift in Earth's atmosphere and lunar gravity. Participants debate the lift required for a human weighing 1/11th of their weight, with corrections noting that lunar gravity is actually 1/6th. The conversation highlights the historical context of human-powered flight and the challenges posed by materials like bee's wax used in wing construction. The dimensions of a wandering albatross are referenced as a potential model for wing design.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of basic aerodynamics
  • Knowledge of gravitational forces on Earth and the Moon
  • Familiarity with historical human-powered flight concepts
  • Insight into materials science, specifically regarding the melting points of natural adhesives
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the principles of lift and drag in aerodynamics
  • Explore the effects of lunar gravity on flight dynamics
  • Investigate the history and design of human-powered aircraft
  • Study the properties of materials used in wing construction, focusing on adhesives
USEFUL FOR

Aerodynamics enthusiasts, aerospace engineers, historians of aviation, and anyone interested in the mechanics of human-powered flight.

dedocta
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Could they generate enough lift for 1/11th the weight of a human? Was picturing a giant warehouse and curious if it would work!
 
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dedocta said:
Could they generate enough lift for 1/11th the weight of a human? Was picturing a giant warehouse and curious if it would work!
:oldconfused: Why 1/11th? Lunar gravity is 1/6.

Practically, there's no way to really know. How do you decide how much lift a human could produce without first choosing or designing the wings?
 
We have the legend of Icarus flying in the atmosphere.
The problem then was the melting point of the bee's wax used to attach the feathers.
 
Oh my goodness - 1/6th thanks Dave! Bit of a spaceshot here haha. Thats a good point.
 
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A wandering albatross weighs around 25 lbs and has a 10 ft wingspan so the dimensions would not be unreasonable.
 
dedocta said:
Could they generate enough lift for 1/116th the weight of a human? Was picturing a giant warehouse and curious if it would work!
Since this thread start is in the technical Physics forms and not SciFi, shouldn't you be asking about how much farther optimized human powered flight could fly?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_human-powered_aircraft
 

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