Tetrahedron Kites

Tetrahedron Kites By Christopher Quimbly

Project Overview My kite will use tissue paper, straws, and string. • 4 25’’ string and 4 45’’ string. • We had to build our very own tetrahedron kites. • We had to make 4 tetrahedrons and then connect them together.

What I’d Like To Learn • How good will the tetrahedron kites fly. • What materials will we use. • How long will it take to build the kites.

Answers • The tetrahedron kites flew very good. • It took us 3 days to build our kites.

Materials • The materials I used are: • Tissue paper • Straws • String

Basics of Flight The basics of flight are thrust, lift, drag, and gravity. Thrust is created by the engines. • Lift occurs because air flows both over and under the surface of the wing. • Drag opposes thrust. Although it mainly occurs because of air resistance as air flows around the wing, several different types of drag exist. • Gravity is actually a force of acceleration on an object. The Earth exerts this natural force on all objects. Being a constant force, it always acts in the same direction: downward. Thrust creates lift to counteract gravity. In order for an aircraft to take off, enough lift must be created to overcome the force of gravity pushing down on the aircraft.

The Diamond Kite • The most basic type of kite is the diamond shape kite. It was made famous by Ben Franklin during his experiment testing the properties of electricity. Often referred to as an Eddy kite, the diamond shape is the most rudimentary of kite models. It is easy to make by placing two sticks in a cross pattern, stretching material over it, and then attaching a length of string around the outside.

Box Kite • The box kite is shaped like a large rectangle with material wrapped around the top and bottom. It was invented by Australia's Lawrence Hardgrave in 1893 while he was trying to create a manned flying machine.

Winged Box Kite • The winged box kite shares the same basic shape as the box kite, though it includes the addition of two triangular pieces added to the long side of the box frame. These winged pieces feature strings that are used to control the kite.

Sled Kite • A sled kite is shaped similarly to the popular winter vehicle made to travel over ice and snow. However, in the case of the kite, the sled model has: • •A rectangular base with curved sides • •A flying line attached to the edges of the kite rather than the middle of the frame • •Long streamers at the bottom of the kite's base

Delta Kite • The delta kite is a triangular kite, similar to the diamond. The triangle frame is covered with material and a line is attached for flying. In some designs, a smaller triangle is added to the tail of the delta to give it more support. • At its core, the delta kite is an isosceles triangle with a very long base. Given its aerodynamic properties, the delta kite usually outperforms other types of flat kites.

Power Kites • The horseshoe-shaped frame has lines attached to each end, and is typically used in conjunction with a boat or board. • Power kites can be used on the water to kite surf. To do so, a rider is strapped into a harness and stands on a board, which is attached to the kite. In kite land boarding, the rider is lifted into the air by two or three power kites. • www.aviastar.org/theory/basics_of_flight/index.html

Result • I think my tetrahedron kite flew very well because it stayed in the air for a while.

Tetrahedron Kites