[BLANK AUDIO] Today we're flying high in the future sky.
Welcome to What the Future.
On today's show we're taking a look at experimental aircrafts aiming to shake up the aerospace industry.
From supersonic flying saucers to high altitude aircraft that could Stay airborne for a whole year.
The future is coming, and we've got it covered.
Let's get into it.>>Part flying saucer and part quad copter.
This miniature is a prototype of an unmanned aerial vehicle called a Defoe, which stands for all directional flying object at slow speeds.
A depot flies like a traditional quad copter drone When a depot needs an extra boost to jets built into the back provide horizontal thrust.
But this miniature prototype doesn't have jet power quite yet.
A depots developers say it will also be able to fly upside down and with the right jets could go supersonic without a traditional Sonic Boom.
Adeepo's unique design could prove useful in the development of other unmanned ariel vehicles, combat aircraft, and suborbital vehicles.
Right now Adeepo's inventors are looking for partners to help take this flying saucer to even greater heights.
Imagine a high altitude solar plane that could stay in the air for a whole year.
That's the vision behind the A plus dure high altitude pseudo satellite.
The Pseudo could someday be put to work gathering environmental and atmospheric data, relaying internet and radio signals over long distances or helping with military surveillance.
The wings of this prototype are covered in solar panels and it has a wingspan of about thirty two feet, roughly one third the size of the final version No word yet on when we'll see a full-sized Apis Duo, but you can bet we'll have it covered.
[SOUND] Feast your eyes on Phoenix, the first aircraft to fly like a fish.
Most fish adjust their buoyancy in water by inflating and deflating their swim bladder.
Phoenix acts in a similar way, alternating between heavier-than-air craft and a lighter-than-air balloon.
By adjusting the amount of helium and it's fuel so large and releasing compressed air at the back for forward propulsion.
Phoenix is battery powered.
And its batteries are recharged by solar panels on the wings.
Developers say their current goal is to get Phoenix flying at an altitude of about 66,000 feet Eventually, Phoenix could be an affordable way to help lunch Micro satellite into orbit, and relay digital communications, the team behind Phoenix is currently looking for manufacturing partners to assist in the next phase of the development.
Flap free flight could be cheaper, stealthier and safer than traditional air craft design.
The Magma unmanned aerial vehicle is here to test that out.
In this test flight the Magma UAV takes off using its flaps to manuever like a traditional plane.
Once in flight however it tests two new kinds of flight control.
The first is called wing circulation control.
It involves air from the engine being blown supersonically through small vents around the wing in order to change the aircraft direction.
The other type of control test it is called fruidic thrust vectoring.
For this test, the engines exhaust is deflected in order to maneuver the vehicle
[MUSIC]
Less moving parts on an aircraft means less moving parts to manufacturer and maintain, which could lead to a cheaper aircraft.
[MUSIC]
This technology could also reduce aircraft's radar presence since these new flight controls are less disturbing to the surrounding air, than adjustable flaps.
This technology is purely experimental at this point.
And the data gathered during these test flights will be used to guide future research and test.
That's all for this week I'm your host Jesse [INAUDIBLE]
see you next time [SOUND]
