Skip to main content
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum
Header Menu
Activities & Multimedia
Ask An Explainer
About the Exhibit
Search
Section Menu
Forces of Flight
The Four Forces
We Aren't Built to Fly
Gravity & Air
Gravity
Air
Buoyancy
Aerodynamics
Air in Motion
Subsonic Wings
Factors Affecting Lift
Alternative Theories of Lift
Pressure Drag
Friction Drag
Vortex Drag
Waves in the Air
Shock Waves
Propulsion
Propellers
Engines
Rocket Propulsion
Vertical Flight
Structures & Materials
Weight and Strength
Materials
Hypersonic Vehicles
Shaped for Space
Flight Dynamics
Control Surfaces
Roll, Pitch, and Yaw
Instruments
Gravity in Orbit
Newton’s Laws of Motion
Kepler’s Laws of Orbital Motion
Moving in Space
Thrusters and Spinning Wheels
Activities
Share
Twitter
Facebook
Ask an Explainer - Structures & Materials
Search Ask an Explainer QA
Displaying records 81 to 90 of 285
Pagination
Page
5
Page
6
Page
7
Page
8
Current page
9
Page
10
Page
11
Page
12
Page
13
…
First page
Previous page
‹
Next page
›
Last page
Q:
Why is the honeycomb structure not used in commercial aircraft?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Q:
What does "spilling the air from its wings" mean?
Categories:
Forces of Flight
,
Aerodynamics
,
Structures & Materials
Q:
Why are natural fibers not used as aircraft material?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Q:
Why don't windows in planes shatter due to the pressure difference inside and outside the cabin?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Q:
What are the two main types of rockets?
Categories:
Forces of Flight
,
Propulsion
,
Structures & Materials
Q:
Could a jet fly if it were made out of wood?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Q:
How do airplanes fly without an engine?
Categories:
Propulsion
,
Structures & Materials
Q:
Why do most aircrafts have a specific shape?
Categories:
Aerodynamics
,
Structures & Materials
Q:
Can the ailerons be placed somewhere else on the plane?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Q:
What is cross coupling in helicopters?
Categories:
Structures & Materials
Pagination
Page
5
Page
6
Page
7
Page
8
Current page
9
Page
10
Page
11
Page
12
Page
13
…
First page
Previous page
‹
Next page
›
Last page