Control a Microraptor's Flight

Control a Microraptor’s Flight . . . by building a glider that you can steer!

Here’s what you need to know:

lift

thrust drag

gravity

There are a lot of forces that affect how something flies! There are 4 main forces that you need to know:

Lift is the force that’s the opposite of gravity. While gravity keeps us on the ground, lift keeps birds in the air. To use lift, birds and flying dinosaurs need wings. Birds flap their wings against the air which pushes them up, up, and away!

Thrust is the forward force or the direction the flying animal is going. Drag is the opposite of thrust and pushes the flying animal back. When you hold your hand out a car window, you can feel the air pushing your hand backward. This is drag!

44 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ Microraptor was a small four-winged dinosaur that lived during the early Cretaceous period.

Microraptor 45 Did you know some dinosaurs had feathers?

front wing

back wing

Feathers helped Microraptors fly by increasing the size of their wings without adding very much weight. Their feathered wings helped them push against the air and create lift to maneuver through forests in search of food. Unlike birds who flap their wings to fly, Microraptors probably climbed up trees and then jumped out, opening their wings to glide to the next tree! They lived in forests with lots of trees and likely used their back wings like rudders (like the ones on boats and airplanes) to control drag and change their direction quickly. 46 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ Different animals fly in different ways! Think about all the flying animals you’ve seen, and the many ways that they fly!

bats can turn really fast and need less energy than birds to fly because of the flexible structure of their wings

Flower flies can hover owls fly silently and are excellent and turn very well at changing directions through trees because their wings can flap so quickly! Draw some more examples here!

Microraptor 47 Get ready to build your flying Microraptor! List all the materials you plan to use. There’s a few here to get started. If there are other materials you need, add them too!

tape

paper straws

string

modelling clay pipe cleaners

48 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ Draw your plan for a flying Microraptor design here. Label all the parts and how it will move so that everyone else can understand your amaz- ing plan! Draw the shape of your design and think about where you need to attach control strings to your design!

Microraptor 49 Start building! If you have trouble getting started, here’s one way to build a flying Microraptor that you can control:

step 1: Use your plan drawing to start building the frame of your design with straws and pipe cleaners, including the wings and tail. These will be like the bones of your design.

step 2: Cover the wings, tail, and body with lightweight paper. This will help your design catch air when it flies to create lift!

50 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ step 3: Attach strings to the wings. When the design is flying, pulling these should help you to steer! Use clay to add some weight to the underside of the attach string attach string design for balance.

step 4: Test your design! Use a fan or windy day to fly your Microraptor. While it’s flying, try pulling the strings at different times. Does it change direction?

Microraptor 51 How does it work? Sometimes it takes a few tries to make something work like you want it to! If yours doesn’t work the ﬁ rst time, try to ﬁ nd a way to make it better! Take notes on what problems you had, or what worked really well.

52 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ Draw your Microraptor here, or tape in a picture of your design!

Microraptor 53 Put on your thinking cap! Reflect on what you’ve made! What can you change to make it work better? Did you learn how to do something new? Here’s one question to get you started:

Does your design have four wings? Why do you think birds today don’t have four wings?

54 curiositymachine.org/challenges/64/ There are animals living today that use gliding as a way to get around! Flying squirrels are really cool animals that travel from tree to tree by gliding. They don’t have wings, but use a flap of skin between their front and back legs to create lift.

Microraptor 55