Air Transportation

In the war years, Greyhounds were crowded with travelers, leading planners to look at a new technology: helicopters.

In a Fit of 1940s Optimism, Greyhound Proposed a Fleet of Helicopter Buses

"Greyhound Skyways" would have turned major cities into bustling helicopter hubs

Researchers discovered the effect in hamsters while trying to find a cure for jet lag in people.

Another Use for Viagra: Curing Hamster Jet Lag

It works—but only for hamsters (and maybe people) traveling east

Fulcrum BioEnergy converts household trash into biofuel for airplanes.

Could Garbage Fuel Airplanes?

Fulcrum BioEnergy wants to divert trash from landfills and create cheap green energy

The taxi of the future doesn't drive—it flies.

Dubai Will Get Self-Flying Taxis This Year

Bypass traffic with the taxi of the future

DragonflEye

Turning Dragonflies Into Drones

The DragonflEye project equips the insects with solar-powered backpacks that control their flight

Australia Wants to Streamline Its Border Control Using Biometrics

The country envisions a system that would eliminate the need for paper passports or identity cards for a number of the 35 million who visit each year

Balloon prints like this one, of the Great Nassau “enable us to share some sense of the excitement that gripped those watching their fellow beings rise into the sky for the first time,” writes Tom D. Crouch of the National Air and Space Museum.

A Picture History of One of the World’s Greatest Hot Air Balloons

Designed by Charles Green, the Great Nassau was big enough to capture the imaginations of an entire country

Awwwww.

Japan Tries (and Fails) to Launch a Tiny Rocket

Sending teensy satellites into space isn’t just an experiment in cute—it's an effort to reduce the cost of sending tech into space

A new study on pilots' mental health suggests the skies may not be that friendly after all.

Think Your Job Is Depressing? Try Being an Airline Pilot

New study suggests pilots are more depressed than the average American

Boeing N2S

Take to the Skies in One of These Restored Vintage WWII Airplanes

Earn your wings and experience a slice of aviation history from the cockpit of a historic aircraft

A 1933 Oil painting of the ill-fated aviator by Howard Chandler Christy.

What to Make of Renewed Claims That Amelia Earhart Died as a Castaway

Reexamination of data from a 1940 skeleton, suggests that the long forearms may match those of the missing aviator

Can This App Cure Your Fear of Flying?

No, you're not plummeting from the sky. But the SkyGuru app can help explain why it might feel that way, using real-time flight data

IBM’s Watson Takes On Yet Another Job, as a Weather Forecaster

The integration of the supercomputer and weather stations around the world could have a huge impact on global industry

The studio model of the Starship Enterprise from the original Star Trek TV series underwent extensive restoration.

Catch the Spiffy New Look for the Hall that Houses The Spirit of St. Louis, Bell X-1 and Other Famous Flyers

Just in time for its 40th birthday, the museum revamps its main exhibition hall and Star Trek "Enterprise" debuts

The bombing site as seen from above.

During the Cold War, the Air Force Dropped an Unarmed Nuke on South Carolina

Amazingly, none of the Gregg family of Mars Bluff were seriously hurt, not even the cat

The first drone to make an FAA-approved delivery is joining the collection at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum

The First Delivery Drone in the United States Lands a Spot at the Smithsonian

The Flirtey F3.0 hexacopter touches ground at the National Air and Space Museum

Sam Bousfield, pictured here in a mock-up of the Switchblade, worked with Boeing engineers refining wind-tunnel construction before launching Samson Motorworks.

The Future of Cars Is Already Here

Even before the "Jetsons," people dreamed of flying cars. Now breakthroughs in technology are helping all kinds of vehicles get off the ground

What Are You Flying Over? This App Will Tell You

Flyover Country uses maps and geology databases to identify features of the landscape as a plane flies over them, no Wifi necessary

A prototype airplane lavatory by Boeing uses UV rays to zap germs.

The Sky Might Soon Be Flush With Self-Cleaning Bathrooms

A new Boeing prototype lavatory zaps germs with UV rays

Scientists keep finding new ways the brain can be deceived.

A New Way to Trick the Brain and Beat Jet Lag

For all its complexity, the human brain is not hard to deceive. Here are four studies where scientists have learned more about duping it

Page 4 of 7