Pioneers of Flight
The legend of Wan Hu
1China launched its first rocket with human beings aboard on October15,2003.Astronaut Yang Liwei brought to its fulfillment a dream that probably had its roots in a much earlier time. Although the veracity of the story cannot be confirmed,legend has it that in A.D.1500a man named Wan Hu prepared his own mission to the stars.At that time,the Chinese invention of gunpowder was widely used in rockets for military purposes as well as in fireworks.Wan Hu devised a risky plan to harness the power of such rockets to take him to the stars.
2The story goes that Wan Hu built the first spaceship:a chair with47powerful gunpowder rockets and two kites attached to it.On the day of the launch,each rocket was lit by a different servant carrying a torch.The servants then moved back and waited.An earth-shattering explosion followed:Wan Hu and his primitive spaceship had disappeared completely.Although the story may seem a little far-fetched,the principles of rocket-powered spaceflight are contained in Wan Hu’s crazy dream.
Howard Hughes’s Spruce Goose
3On November2,1947,a crowd of onlookers at San Pedro harbor in Los Angeles witnessed aviation history.An enormous flying boat,nicknamed the Spruce Goose,sped across the bay and rose70feet above the water.After just under a minute,it landed perfectly one mile down the bay.It was the first and last time the boat ever flew.
4The concept for construction of the Spruce Goose came from the need for more effective ways of transporting troops and materials in World War II.The idea came from a man called Henry Kaiser,but it was Howard Hughes,the legendary multi-millionaire,who actually developed the flying boat.
sort of torch翻译
5The Spruce Goose was the biggest airplane ever built and still holds the record for the greatest wingspan,and it was made entirely of wood.Though it had promise,in the end the project failed
for three main reasons:the cost of building the enormous machine;the complexity of working with wood;and Hughes’s perfectionist approach,which caused the entire project to finish behind schedule.The Goose was put into storage and remained hidden from view until1976,when it was put on display for the public.In1992,the plane was dismantled and transported to the state of Oregon,where it remains today.Many of the design features of the Spruce Goose have been incorporated into modern cargo planes.Like other pioneers in the field of transportation,Hughes was simply ahead of his time.
The futuristic ideas of Leonardo da Vinci
6Centuries before Hughes was designing the Spruce Goose,another pioneer in transportation design was sketching plans for different kinds of flying machines.Leonardo da Vinci,perhaps the most famous artist of the Renaissance period,planned flying devices with flapping wings controlled and steered by human pilots.His research focused on the complex anatomy of birds in flight,and he based his flying machines on this analogy.It took almost500years for da Vinci’s sketches to become real.In June2000,a professional parachutist named Adrian Nicholas jumped out of a hot-air balloon over the South African countryside using a parachute made of wood and canvas based on one of da Vinci’s designs.Nicholas landed safely,and Leonardo’s dream became reality.
7These three enigmatic individuals,Wan Hu,Howard Hughes,and Leonardo da Vinci,came from places and cultures that are about as different as we can imagine.What they shared was a fascination with flying,a spirit of innovation,and the courage to try and make their dreams of flight come true.
飞行先驱
万户的传说
12003年10月15日，中国发射了第一枚载人火箭。宇航员杨利伟实现了一个起源于很久之前的梦想。虽然故事的真实性无法考证，但传说一个名叫万户的人在公元1500年筹划了一场他自己的遨游星空之行。当时中国发明的火药被广泛应用于军用火箭和烟花鞭炮。万户设计了一个大胆的计划，要利用这种火箭的动力使自己升上星空。
2故事称万户建造了第一艘宇宙飞船，它是一把椅子，配有47枚强力的用火药推动的火箭，还有两只风筝系于其上。发射那天，每枚火箭各由一名手持火把的仆人点燃。仆人们点火后便退后等待。接着便是一声震天动地的巨响：万户和他那原始的宇宙飞船消失得无影无踪。虽然故事可能显得有点儿牵强，万户的痴梦中却包含了以火箭为动力的宇宙飞行的原理。
霍华德·休斯的云杉鹅
31947年11月2日，一旁观者在洛杉矶的圣佩德罗海湾见证了航空史上一大壮举。一艘别名为云杉鹅的巨型飞船，高速穿过海湾，升到了离水面70英尺的空中。不到一分钟，它完美地在离海湾一英里的地方着陆。这是这艘飞船的第一次也是最后一次飞行。
4建造云杉鹅的想法源于第二次世界大战中更有效地运送部队和物资的需要。这个主意出自一个名为亨利·凯泽的人，但是真正制造这艘飞船的人却是传奇人物千万富翁霍华德·休斯。
5云杉鹅是当时最大的飞机，现在还保持着翼幅最宽的纪录，它完全由木料制成。虽然很有前途，但该项目却以失败告终，其原因有三：建造这种巨型飞机耗资巨大；使用木料制作工艺复杂；而休斯在行事上又是一个完美主义者，致使整个项目工期延误。云杉鹅被存放起来，隐藏在公众视线以外，直到1976年才被陈列展出。1992年这架飞机被拆卸并运送到俄勒冈州，现在还存放在那里。现代货运飞机借鉴了云杉鹅的不少设计特点。像运输领域的其它许多先行者一样，休斯绝对是超前的。
达·芬奇的超前理念
6在休斯设计云杉鹅好几个世纪前，另一位运输设计的先行者已经在勾画不同种类的飞行器草图。列昂纳多·达·芬奇，这位也许是文艺复兴时期最著名的艺术家，画出了多种由人控制和驾驶的带有可以拍打的翅翼的飞行器。他的研究集中在飞鸟的复杂的解剖结构，他的飞行器的设计便是模拟飞鸟的。将近500年后，达·芬奇的草图才变成了实物。2000年6月，专业跳伞运动员艾德里安·尼古拉斯从南非乡村上空的一个热气球里跳出，他使用的降落伞就是根据达·芬奇的一个设计图由木料和帆布制作而成。尼古拉斯安全着陆，达·芬奇的梦想成真。
7万户、霍华德·休斯和列昂纳多·达·芬奇这三位不可思议的人物，来自完全不同的地方和文化背景，但他们却有共同之处，那就是：对飞行的迷恋，创新精神，以及敢于尝试和实现飞行梦想的勇气。

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