My Science School

On July 2, 1900, the first directed flight of the LZ-1, a zeppelin airship, took place in Germany. The man behind it was Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin, who pioneered the cause of building rigid dirigible airships, so much so that his surname is still popularly used as a generic name.

Aeroplanes are now the norm for air travel but there was a brief period early in the aeronautical history when airships or dirigibles were believed capable of playing a crucial role in aviation development. Large, controllable balloons propelled by an engine, airships are one of two types of lighter-than-air aircraft (the other one being well, balloons of course!)

Now relegated to aerial observations, advertising and other areas where staying aloft is more important than movement, airships come in three main types: the non-rigid airships or blimps, the semi-rigid airships, and the rigid airships, often called zeppelins. The last category is more popular as zeppelins because it was a German man called Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin who conceived and developed the first rigid dirigible.

Born in Konstanz, Germany on July 8, 1938, Zeppelin studied at the University of Tubingen before entering the Prussian Army in 1858. He travelled to the U.S. during the American Civil War and acted as a military observer for the Union Army.

An idea is born

It was during this time, in 1863, when Zeppelin had the first of several balloon ascensions at St. Paul, Minnesota. While he was quick to realise the weakness of free balloons, their overdependence on winds and their uncontrollability, it was an experience that stayed with him through a lifetime.

By the 1870s, the idea of building a steerable airship had taken shape in Zeppelin's mind. So when he retired from the army with the rank of brigadier general, he decided to devote himself to building these airships.

Zeppelin toiled for a decade even though there were many naysayers. By 1900, he had built the first rigid-body airship consisting of a long, uniform cylinder with rounded ends. At 420 feet long and 38 feet in diameter, it had a hydrogen gas capacity of nearly 3,99,000 cubic feet.

Flies from a floating hangar

 From a floating hangar on Lake Constance, Germany, the initial flight of LZ-1, the first zeppelin, took place on July 2, 1900. Days away from turning 62, Zeppelin had finally made progress with an idea that had been with him for decades.

While the demonstration wasn't entirely successful, the craft attained speeds of nearly 32 km/hour, enough to spark enthusiasm around zeppelins, get more donations, and have enough funding to keep the progress happening. Zeppelin tirelessly worked to make new and improved dirigibles and even created the first commercial passenger air service with them by 1910, but it wasn't until World War I that support from the government finally came in.

With most aeroplanes still in the development phase, the Germans perceived the advantages of zeppelin-type rigid airships, which could not only attain higher altitudes than aeroplanes of the time, but also remain airborne for nearly 100 hours. More than 100 zeppelins were employed by the Germans for military operations during World War I.

Hindenburg disaster

Zeppelin died in 1917, without seeing the heights that his zeppelins reached, and the tragedy that followed. The LZ-127 ‘Graf Zeppelin’ was launched in 1927 and it was one of the largest ever built. Having a length more than that of two-and-a-half football fields, it made a number of trans-Atlantic flights.

The LZ-129 ‘Hindenburg’ came about in 1936 and was touted to become the most famous zeppelin ever. Instead, tragedy struck and the ‘Hindenburg’ exploded and burned on May 6, 1937 at its mooring mast in New Jersey. (In case you were wondering, the Hindenburg Research investment company, which has constantly been in the news this year following their reports about the Adani Group, was named after this zeppelin.)

The Hindenburg disaster spelt doom for zeppelins as the remaining ones were also taken off service and dismantled. While safety concerns diminished their popularity, they had helped establish the principles of lighter-than-air aircraft and had even been among the first to provide commercial air travel.

Picture Credit : Google 

On July 2, 1900, the first directed flight of the LZ-1, a zeppelin airship, took place in Germany. The man behind it was Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin, who pioneered the cause of building rigid dirigible airships, so much so that his surname is still popularly used as a generic name.

Aeroplanes are now the norm for air travel but there was a brief period early in the aeronautical history when airships or dirigibles were believed capable of playing a crucial role in aviation development. Large, controllable balloons propelled by an engine, airships are one of two types of lighter-than-air aircraft (the other one being well, balloons of course!)

Now relegated to aerial observations, advertising and other areas where staying aloft is more important than movement, airships come in three main types: the non-rigid airships or blimps, the semi-rigid airships, and the rigid airships, often called zeppelins. The last category is more popular as zeppelins because it was a German man called Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin who conceived and developed the first rigid dirigible.

Born in Konstanz, Germany on July 8, 1938, Zeppelin studied at the University of Tubingen before entering the Prussian Army in 1858. He travelled to the U.S. during the American Civil War and acted as a military observer for the Union Army.

An idea is born

It was during this time, in 1863, when Zeppelin had the first of several balloon ascensions at St. Paul, Minnesota. While he was quick to realise the weakness of free balloons, their overdependence on winds and their uncontrollability, it was an experience that stayed with him through a lifetime.

By the 1870s, the idea of building a steerable airship had taken shape in Zeppelin's mind. So when he retired from the army with the rank of brigadier general, he decided to devote himself to building these airships.

Zeppelin toiled for a decade even though there were many naysayers. By 1900, he had built the first rigid-body airship consisting of a long, uniform cylinder with rounded ends. At 420 feet long and 38 feet in diameter, it had a hydrogen gas capacity of nearly 3,99,000 cubic feet.

Flies from a floating hangar

 From a floating hangar on Lake Constance, Germany, the initial flight of LZ-1, the first zeppelin, took place on July 2, 1900. Days away from turning 62, Zeppelin had finally made progress with an idea that had been with him for decades.

While the demonstration wasn't entirely successful, the craft attained speeds of nearly 32 km/hour, enough to spark enthusiasm around zeppelins, get more donations, and have enough funding to keep the progress happening. Zeppelin tirelessly worked to make new and improved dirigibles and even created the first commercial passenger air service with them by 1910, but it wasn't until World War I that support from the government finally came in.

With most aeroplanes still in the development phase, the Germans perceived the advantages of zeppelin-type rigid airships, which could not only attain higher altitudes than aeroplanes of the time, but also remain airborne for nearly 100 hours. More than 100 zeppelins were employed by the Germans for military operations during World War I.

Hindenburg disaster

Zeppelin died in 1917, without seeing the heights that his zeppelins reached, and the tragedy that followed. The LZ-127 ‘Graf Zeppelin’ was launched in 1927 and it was one of the largest ever built. Having a length more than that of two-and-a-half football fields, it made a number of trans-Atlantic flights.

The LZ-129 ‘Hindenburg’ came about in 1936 and was touted to become the most famous zeppelin ever. Instead, tragedy struck and the ‘Hindenburg’ exploded and burned on May 6, 1937 at its mooring mast in New Jersey. (In case you were wondering, the Hindenburg Research investment company, which has constantly been in the news this year following their reports about the Adani Group, was named after this zeppelin.)

The Hindenburg disaster spelt doom for zeppelins as the remaining ones were also taken off service and dismantled. While safety concerns diminished their popularity, they had helped establish the principles of lighter-than-air aircraft and had even been among the first to provide commercial air travel.

Picture Credit : Google 

On March 5, 1590, Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe observed a comet. This was one of the many observations made by Brahe, known for his comprehensive astronomical observations.

The invention of the telescope allowed astronomy to peer further and further still improving technology and better equipment implies that our modem telescopes allow us to see way beyond what our predecessors imagined possible. And yet, there was a time when there were no telescopes when astronomical observations were still being done.

Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe is best known for measuring and fixing the positions of astronomical bodies and developing astronomical instruments. While his observations paved the way for future discoveries, the fact that these were the most accurate measurements from a time when the telescope had yet not been invented makes it all the more special.

Born in Denmark in 1546, Brahe’s parents were part of the nobility. Abducted at a very early age by his wealthy uncle, Brahe was raised by him and attended universities in Copenhagen and Leipzig

Drawn to astronomy

While his family wanted him to be a lawyer and he even studied the subjects, Brahe chose to pursue astronomy eventually. The total eclipse of the sun on August 21, 1560, and the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in August 1563- Brahe's first recorded observation -were natural events that pushed Brahe to devote his lifetime to astronomy.

In 1566, Brahe fought Manderup Parsberg, his third cousin and a fellow student, in a duel over who was the better mathematician. While Parsberg and Brahe went on to become good friends after this, Brahe lost a large chunk of his nose during the duel and had to wear a prosthetic nose to mask the disfigurement for the rest of his life. While this nose was long believed to be made of silver, the exhumation of his body in 2010 revealed that it was made of brass.

Brahe observed a supernova in the constellation of Cassiopeia in 1572 and the new star remained visible for nearly a year-and-a-half. He observed a comet late in 1577 and meticulously followed it till it remained visible in January 1578

Against prevailing theory

 While prevailing theory dictated that disturbances in the atmosphere was the reason behind these. Brahe’s measurements showed differently. Brahe was able to show that the supernova never changed with regard to the surrounding stars. And based on his measurements of the comet, he was able to determine that it was at least six times farther away than the moon

These observations elevated Brake to a new level and he acquired an international reputation. His fame earned him a more comfortable life and the backing of the rulers as King Frederick II of Denmark offered him exclusive usage of his own island of Hven and financial support to carry out astronomical observations.

Brahe built a huge observatory on the island and diligently tracked the heavenly bodies, maintaining impeccable notes of the observations. During his time at Hven, Brake observed at number of comets. The one he observed on March 5, 1590 when he was employed in observing Venus was one of the last he tracked down while at the island.

Combined model

Even though Brahe's work laid bare the flaws of the system that was then used, he failed to embrace Polish polymath Nicolaus Copernicus's proposed model of the universe with the Sun at its centre. Brahe, instead, offered a combined model with the moon, and the sun going around the Earth, even as the five other known planets orbited the sun

Brahe's influence waned following the death of Frederick in 1588 and most of his income stopped under Frederick’s son Christian IV. He left Hven in 1597 and after short stays in a couple of places, settled in Prague in 1599 and stayed there until h death in 1601.

It was in Prague that German astronomer Johannes Kepler started working as Brakes assistant. Kepler. ironically. would go on to use Brahe's detailed observations to arrive at his planetary laws of motion and show that planets moved around the sun in elliptical orbits.

Picture Credit : Google