A solar-powered airplane finished crossing the United States on Saturday, landing in New York City after flying over the Statue of Liberty during its historic bid to circle the globe, the project team said. The spindly, single-seat experimental aircraft, dubbed Solar Impulse 2, arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport at about 4 a.m. local time after it took off about five hours beforehand at Lehigh Valley International Airport in Pennsylvania, the team reported on the airplane's website. Such a pleasure to land in New York! For the 14th time we celebrate sustainability," said the project's co-founder Andre Borschberg on Twitter after flying over the city and the Statue of Liberty during the 14th leg of the trip around the globe. The Swiss team flying the aircraft in a campaign to build support for clean energy technologies hopes eventually to complete its circumnavigation in Abu Dhabi, where the journey began in March 2015. The solar cr...
Some species of vultures developed the ability to tap into turbulent air as a way of gaining altitude according to a new study
Researchers found that these species compensate for their poor flapping skills by seeking out turbulence at low altitudes. The researchers say this explains their awkward, wobbling flying style near tree-tops. The study is published in the journal The Auk: Ornithological Advances. Sometimes called buzzards, Turkey vultures are the most widespread of these species in North America They are unique among these birds as they use their sense of smell to find carrion. For this study researchers in this study observed both Turkey and Black vultures in south eastern Virginia in the US. According to the study's lead author Julie Mallon, then at the University of West Virginia, these particular vultures have evolved a different style of flying, skirting low along the edge of forests."They don't have the muscular power other raptors like eagles have to give chase, vultures don't pursue their prey and they've lost a lot of those adaptations that allowed them...