Lifting Bodies: Designing Your Own Spacecraft

Author: Robin A. Ward, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

Audience: 4-10 graders

Mathematical Topics: writing and communicating mathematically, cooperative learning

Rationale: According to the NCTM Standards 2000,"good tasks fuel students' curiosity and encourage them to talk about mathematics" (p. 31). Moreover, mathematics is a "great cultural and intellectual achievement of humankind" and students should "develop an appreciation and understanding of that achievement" (p. 45).

In this activity, students will be given the opportunity to work cooperatively with their classmates in designing a "lifting body"; that is, a wingless vehicle that could fly back to Earth from space, landing like an aircraft. Students will also be required to present their sketches (or 3-D models) to their classmates, describing and defending their choices for the shape and design of their spacecraft. Additionally, students will learn some facts about the lifting body program or read the history of the lifting body program that began at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center and discover how this program led to the development of today's Space Shuttle program as well as the X-38 and the X-33.

View a photo of three of the lifting bodies, namely the X-24A, M2-F3, and the HL-10.
Learn some facts about the lifting body program at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center.

View several photos of the X-24A.
View several photos of the M2-F3.
View several photos of the HL-10.
View a movie clip of the HL-10.

Learn some facts about the X-38.
View a movie clip of the X-38.
View several photos of the X-33.
View a movie clip of the X-33.

Materials:

overhead of the three proposed lifting bodies (the Ames M2-F1, the M1-L half-cone, and the Langley lenticular)

overhead of the actual lifting bodies (the X-24A, the M2-F3, and the HL-10)

posterboard, crayons, and magic markers (for a 2-D sketch)

toothpicks, popsicle sticks, tin foil, plastic wrap, glue, scissors, paint, etc. (for a 3-D model)

Background: A fleet of lifting bodies flown at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center from 1963 to l975 demonstrated the ability of pilots to maneuver (in the atmosphere) and safely land a wingless vehicle. These lifting bodies were designed so they could fly back to Earth from space and land like an aircraft. These unique research vehicles, with their unconventional aerodynamic shapes, were the M2-F1, M2-F2, M2-F3, HL-10, X-24A, and the X-24B. The information the lifting body program generated contributed to the database that led to development of today's Space Shuttle program as well as the X-33. Unlike conventional aircraft, the aerodynamic lift essential to flight in the atmosphere was obtained from the shape of the vehicles rather than from wings. The addition of fins and control surfaces allowed the pilots to stabilize and control the vehicles and regulate their flight paths.

To learn more about the lifting body program, read Wingless Flight by R. Dale Reed, a research engineer who was instrumental in the development and implementation of the lifting body flight research program at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. As Chapter 1 unfolds, Reed recounts how the "adventure begins" and how the lifting body program was originally conceived and launched.

Shown in Chapter 1 is a photo of the three lifting-body shapes first proposed by Reed and his colleagues. The vehicles from left to right are: the Ames M2-F1, the M1-L half-cone, and the Langley lenticular. Reed comments in his book that, "The lenticular lifting-body shape was particularly intriguing because, to many of us, it immediately calls to mind the popular flying-saucer portrayed by the media as the spacecraft of extraterrestrials. My wife, Donna, however, had her own special appreciation of the lenticular shape, dubbing it the Powder Puff."

Reed continues on in Chapter 1 describing the proposed spacecraft: "All three of the lifting-body shapes were based on some sort of variable geometry. The M2-F1 was a 13-degree half-cone that achieved transonic stability by spreading its body flaps much like what's done by a shuttle cock in the game of badminton. The M1-L was a 40-degree half-cone that achieved a better landing lift-to-drag ratio by blowing up a rubber boat tail after it slowed down. The lenticular lifting-body would transition to horizontal flight by extending control surfaces after making reentry much like a symmetrical capsule."

In this activity, students will be challenged to work in groups (of twos or threes) to design their own lifting body. Before beginning the activity, the teacher should first allow ample time for the students to read some facts about the lifting body program or read Chapter 1 from R. Dale Reed's book, Wingless Flight. Students might also view a photo of three proposed lifting bodies and three of the actual lifting bodies (X-24A, M2-F3, and the HL-10).

The teacher is encouraged to begin a group discussion on lifting bodies and allow time for students to brainstorm. Students will be asked to develop either a 2-dimensional model of a lifting body (which will simply be a sketch using markers or crayons on posterboard), or, students might create a 3-dimensional lifting body using such household items as toothpicks, popsicle sticks, tin foil, plastic wrap, glue, scissors, paint, etc.

Along with sketching or building a lifting body, the teacher might require students to write an essay describing and defending why they chose the shape and design of their particular spacecraft. Students can present their essays and sketches/models to the entire class or, the teacher might put the sketches/models out on display in the classroom alongside of the essays.

Depending upon the intent of the teacher, this activity might serve as a take-home, week-long assignment, or perhaps as an in-class project that endures several class periods.

In completing this activity, it is hoped that students' interest in what makes an aircraft or spacecraft fly will be sparked. This, in turn, might prompt students to begin considering a career in aerospace engineering or aviation. Also, by reading excerpts from R. Dale Reed's book, Wingless Flight, students will learn how one's dreams of designing aircraft can come true.

The Activity:

The teacher might begin by asking students to use the WWW to learn some facts about the lifting body program or read Chapter 1 from R. Dale Reed's book, Wingless Flight. This should be done prior to implementing the activity. Facilitate a classroom discussion on the lifting body program. Where did the lifting body program begin? What vehicles were part of the lifting body program? What made these vehicles so unique?

Show students the overhead of three lifting bodies first proposed by Reed and his colleagues. These vehicles are also shown in the photo below. From left to right, shown are the Ames M2-F1, the M1-L half-cone, and the Langley lenticular.

Ask students to describe the vehicles. Provide Reed's description of the three proposed bodies, as described in Chapter 1 of his book, Wingless Flight. Also show students three of the actual lifting bodies (X-24A, M2-F3, and the HL-10).

Place students into groups of twos or threes and instruct them to design a sketch (or model) of their own lifting body. Allow plenty of time for brainstorming, as students might want to look at other resources on how to design their spacecraft. For example, students might first want to learn about the anatomy of an airplane, the parts of an airplane, the four forces of flight, or how to build an airplane.

Also, remind students that they will write an essay defending their design choices of their spacecraft. Thus, they might want to keep a journal as they build their spacecraft, describing their decision making process during the construction of their spacecraft.

After the class has completed the activity, allow the students to share their sketches/models with their classmates. The teacher might hang the sketches around the room for all of the students to see, or, if 3-D models are built, the teacher might place the models on a table in the room. Allow students to present their lifting body to the class, describing their design process. Why did the students choose a particular shape? What makes their spacecraft so unique or most efficient?

Enrichment Activity: If students are interested, they can continue reading more of Dale Reed's book, Wingless Flight. Or, students might read about some of the pilots of the Lifting Bodies program. Some of these pilots include:

Click here to read about other NASA Dryden pilots.

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