Monday, May 11, 2015

Facts About Parachutes

If you will throw a package box out from a plane, it will fall as fast as it can down the ground and will crash onto the ground which can damage everything that's inside of it. However, if you attach a parachute to it, it will safely land to the ground. What is a parachute? A parachute is a device that looks like an umbrella or a wing. It is designed to be like those things to be able to fight against the air. 

As early as 1100's, the Chinese had fun by jumping from high places using devices that looked like umbrellas. About 300 years after, an inventor and an artist known as Leonardo da Vinci which designed another kind of device that is shaped like pyramid. However, the first successful jump was created late 1700's on a tower with a balloon. The first successful airplane jump was in 1912. 

While the World War 1 and World War 2, they were able to send supplies and troops through parachutes. But after the second the world war, they were able to invent parachutes for the sake of sports and today, there are a lot of brave souls enjoying this kind of hobby. However, the military does not stop from using parachutes during their operations. 

A basic parachute has 5 main parts. First is the pilot chute which is a little canopy for pulling out a bigger one. This bigger canopy is the main one which usually is made from nylon. Suspension lines are those that can be found connecting the canopy to the harness. The harness is made up of group of straps which can fit to a person and will work as a body support. Another material that is fastened to the harness is a ripcord. When you pull it, it will inflate the bigger canopy. The pack that looks like a bag pack is the one that is keeping all these parts excluding the harness.

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