 Through
the history of powered
flight planes have been
designed and constructed
with basically one shape;
the tube and wing design.
This design has proven
to be very effective.
In fact our entire infrastructure
including our terminals
and hangars have been
built around it. But with
air travel expected to
triple by 2015, it is
widely believed that the
tube and wing design will
reach the peak of its
usefulness. For this reason,
designing new aircraft
has become a priority.
NASA and its partners
are developing a new type
of vehicle called the
blended wing body, or
BWB to meet these new
requirements. Drastically
different than the conventional
tube and wing design,
the BWB is designed as
a giant flying wing. It's
built with state of the
art composite materials
that make it more efficient
and stronger than conventional
designs.
Additional Information
http://oea.larc.nasa.gov/PAIS/BWB.html
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