Aeronautical science involves the creation and operation of aircraft, descended from nautical science and distinguished from astronautical science. Scientists have studied aeronautics for centuries, with advances in safety, navigation, engineering, and materials. Aeronautical science is the foundation of the commercial aircraft industry and informs space exploration.
Aeronautical science is the collective name for the various sciences involved in the creation and operation of aircraft. The word “aeronautics” means “to sail through the air”. Aeronautical science is descended from nautical science, the science of sea ships, and can be distinguished from astronautical science, which is concerned with spacecraft. With rare exceptions, aeronautical vehicles are designed only for travel in the Earth’s atmosphere. While airplanes are the most common vehicles, aeronautical devices can also include gliders, airships, hot air balloons, and even kites.
Scientists have studied the principles of aeronautics for centuries. The famous Leonardo da Vinci designed flying machines in the 1500s, but aeronautical science was so little understood, even by da Vinci, that these craft were incapable of flight. It was not until the 19th century that the British scientist Sir George Cayley identified the principles of weight, drag, lift and momentum; the first two must be cleared by the last two for an aircraft to reach elevation. Cayley built and tested the first gliders in the mid-19th century, with designs similar to modern airplanes.
Long before, however, aeronautical pioneers experimented with lighter-than-air devices to achieve human flight. These scientists understood that certain gases are lighter than air, including air itself when heated, and will naturally rise in the atmosphere. If this gas is contained, it can lift objects and even people.
France’s Montgolfier brothers, Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne, proved this with their famous hot air balloon flight of 1783. That flight predated Cayley’s experiments by 70 years and the airplane of brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright by more than a century. The following year, Jean-Pierre Blanchard added a propeller to a balloon, effectively creating the first airship, or airship.
In the century following the Wright brothers’ flight in 1903, aeronautical science advanced rapidly as aircraft were adapted for use in warfare, commerce, transportation, and sport. These intense uses required advances in safety, navigation, engineering and materials. Aeronautical scientists soon had to master understanding a wide variety of sciences, including electronics, aerodynamics, metallurgy, and calculus. In modern times, the creation of simple aircraft requires specialized equipment and personnel with advanced training.
Aeronautical science is the foundation of the commercial aircraft industry, an enterprise that generates over $400 billion USD annually. Its principles also informed the development of space exploration; the two sciences are known collectively as aerospace engineering. Advances in aeronautics often find application in everyday life, including commonplace objects like juice boxes and Velcro shoe fasteners. Thus, aeronautics influences much of human life, from modern conveniences to exploration of Earth and beyond.
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