Re:The James Webb Space Telescope – making 300 points of fai...
by antognini on Sunday January 09, 2022 @03:53PM
(#29867216)
The flex test that the wings go through is pretty incredible:
https://www.wired.com/images_blogs/autopia/2010/03/index.jpg
Re:The James Webb Space Telescope – making 300 points of fai...
by steadyready on Sunday January 09, 2022 @05:05PM
(#29867788)
Yes, I know! I don’t remember what video I saw but the wings were bent beyond imagination. Made me realise that what I saw while flying wasn’t even 30% of what they can withstand. Incredible engineering.
Re:The James Webb Space Telescope – making 300 points of fai...
by WalterBright on Sunday January 09, 2022 @05:38PM
(#29868078)
The Lockheed Elektra was infamous for its wings mysteriously coming off. Much research finally revealed that dynamic instability (flutter) was the cause. A great deal has been learned about how to prevent this, and a lot of effort goes into designing a wing that isn't susceptible to flutter.
I did the calculations for the 757 elevators to show it wouldn't flutter. And yes, it was also verified on the test stand.
Re:The James Webb Space Telescope – making 300 points of fai...
by AzN1337c0d3r on Sunday January 09, 2022 @06:09PM
(#29868386)
There was an F-15 that had a mid-air collision, the entire wing ripped off, and it managed to safely land.
https://taskandpurpose.com/history/1983-negev-mid-air-collis...
Re:The James Webb Space Telescope – making 300 points of fai...
by alexpotato on Sunday January 09, 2022 @07:15PM
(#29868957)
The A-10 and it's redundant abilities are worth reading up on too:
- https://theaviationist.com/2017/08/16/the-crazy-story-of-the...
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairchild_Republic_A-10_Thunde...
And as for “the wings fall off” part, makes me remember a quote of an engineer I once read that goes something like this: “The wings are the strongest part of the airplane. If you worry about them ripping apart or falling off, you have way bigger problems than that, like the rest of the plane missing”.