Search Results

The 1903 Flyer was the first aircraft to make a successful, controllable, heavier-than-air flight. View the Flyer at different angles, the customized lightweight motor, and other related images for a complete picture of this breakthrough in aircraft…

Mitosis is the series of visible changes that occur in the nucleus and chromosomes of non-gamete-producing plant and animal cells as they divide. This Image Gallery exhibit depicts these events using state-of-the art microscopy and digital image…

From the inspiration of a toy helicoptor to glider tests at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, view photographic documentation of the Wright Brothers' attempts at human flight and the stages toward a final successful aircraft. View launches and landings,…

The Mesozoic Era (about 250 to 65 million years ago) is a geologic time period that is known as the "Age of the Dinosaurs." However, paleontologists are finding more evidence of varied abundance of life during this age, tracing the common ancestor…

On December 26, 2004, a giant earthquake of magnitude 9.3 on the Richter scale was triggered in the deep ocean off western Indonesia. Simultaneously, a devastating tsunami was generated, causing destruction and loss of life around Indian Ocean…

NASA's twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity set down on the surface of Mars in January 2004. After meeting the 90-day goal, both rovers continued to dig, measure, observe, photograph, and explore the rough terrain. This Image Gallery showcases images…

The European Space Agency's (ESA) first mission to Mars, called Mars Express, was launched June 2, 2003 and entered an orbit around the planet by December 25. This Image Gallery exhibits a number of images of Mars captured by the High Resolution…

Spanish histologist, Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852-1934), is credited with establishing modern neuroscience in the early 20th century. Some of Cajal's earliest illustrations of the structures of the nervous system are reproduced in this gallery along…

Glaciers in cold mountain regions are key indicators of global climate change. This Image Gallery exhibits glaciers, their behavior, and influence on the surrounding environment. View mountain glaciers dramatically shaping our landscapes around the…

Otto Lilienthal and Octave Chanute were the pioneers of flight who most influenced and inspired Orville and Wilbur Wright. Photographs of Lilienthal, a German engineer, depict his flying attempts in various gliders before his career was cut short in…

A supernova is the explosive death of a star. This Image Gallery exhibit shows optical, x-ray, and radio images of five famous supernova remnants of varying ages, from the extremely young (SN 1987A, at just over 15 years old) to the very old (Vela…

In 2006, evolutionary biologists at the American Museum of Natural History conducted a phylogenetic analysis of spiny-rayed teleost fishes. They discovered that at least a thousand more venomous fish species inhabit worldwide aqautic ecosystems—a…

Wilbur Wright asks for help from the respected engineer, Octave Chanute, in May of 1900. View all five pages of this original handwritten letter, which provides remarkable insight into the approach the Wright Brothers were planning to take in…

The weather station in this project is quite basic, measuring only temperature, pressure, and humidity, but it may be easily expanded to measure other weather components, such as wind speed and rainfall. The design is based on using a series of…

Floor plans show walls, windows, doors, and other features of a room or building. Architects and engineers use them to study spatial relationships and describe their designs. Typically, floor plans are rendered as two-dimensional drawings.In this…

Whether preparing for Halloween or just a regular day, you can make skull-shaped edibles from this project's 3D candy mold. Like many molds, this one is a hollow container into which you can pour water or hot liquids, such as gelatin, chocolate, or…

A spur gear is a common toothed wheel that works with other wheels in a set to adjust the speed, power, or direction of a complex machine. It's found in many everyday devices, such as electric screwdrivers, washing machines, and mechanical clocks…

Terrain maps are physical models that give you an at-a-glance overview of landforms. Architects, builders, and engineers often use these types of maps to provide context to proposed building designs. In this project, you'll create a layered…

LEDs (light-emitting diodes) are rectifying semiconductor devices that convert electrical energy into electromagnetic radiation. You can use these devices to create a 3-dimensional light display. LED cubes require some care and good soldering skills…

An oscilloscope is a device that allows you to see an electronic signal so that it appears as a waveform. Traditional oscilloscopes work by amplifying a signal to control the position of a dot on the y-axis (vertical axis) of a cathode-ray tube…

The term "Chatbot" is used for a computer or computer program that is made to emulate some form of human intelligence through conversation. In this project, you will learn how easy it is to make a specific microcontroller—an Arduino™ Uno—seem as…

This project uses a sensitive light-detecting resistor to detect small changes in the light beaming through your finger as your blood pumps through tiny arteries in the finger. This device is not the same as the heart-rate monitors typically used in…

This project takes you through the steps to build, launch, and fly a foam glider in sustained and controlled flight. Control in flight is achieved by modifying the wind the glider flies through with a large cardboard sheet (paddle). If this is your…

This is a working alarm. It uses a laser beam that bounces between mirrors attached to two walls that face each other. The figure to the right has been digitally edited to show the path of the beam. When the beam is broken, a buzzer sounds.This…

This project allows you to use electromagnetic levitation to suspend a globe of the world above a surface. The "globe" is actually a table tennis ball painted to look like a globe. Keeping it in place requires careful control of electrical current…

Environmental research often involves the use of data loggers to record data at regular intervals over a period of time. Most data loggers are based on digital processors, and can be fairly expensive, but you can build your own. This project uses a…

A pulse generator circuit is an important building block for many electronic projects, such as the heart of a digital clock. Its purpose is basically to switch an output on and off for as long as the circuit is activated. Sometimes, these circuits…

A red, green, and blue (RGB) light-emitting diode (LED) is a useful electronic component that can produce visible light in a variety of colors. This is done by varying the intensity of the light output of the three different color LED elements (red,…

A theremin is a musical instrument developed in the 1920s by the Russian inventor, Léon Theremin. It was one of the world's first electronic musical instruments. The original invention used radio-frequency electronics and a pair of antennae. By…

This project takes you through the steps to build, launch,and fly a paper airplane (glider) in sustained and controlled flight. Control in flight is achieved by modifying the wind the glider flies through with a large cardboard sheet or foam board…

This project takes you through the steps to build, launch, and fly an ultralight foam glider in sustained and controlled flight. Controlled flight is achieved by modifying the wind the glider flies through with a large cardboard sheet, or paddle.The…

White noise is a smooth hiss consisting of all audio frequencies played back at random simultaneously. Because your ears cannot "lock" onto any specific frequencies or patterns in white noise, this device has the effect of shutting off your ears to…

In this project, you will build a small, vertical-axis wind turbine, or VAWT for short. VAWTs are not as efficient as their horizontal-axis cousins, but they are better suited to urban environments where wind can come from different…

Everything in the universe is in motion. One basic, yet important, type of motion is constant-speed motion. This project takes you through assembly of a model battery-powered vehicle that moves at a constant speed. This particular vehicle is built…