Warning: I am able to write to the configuration file: /home/flagsand/public_html/includes/configure.php. This is a potential security risk - please set the right user permissions on this file.
History of Kites
Kites made their appearance
over three thousand years
ago, in China. All the right
materials for making kites
were found there: Bamboo for
the frame and silk for the sail
and bridle. It had a mythical
and religious dimension. Later
it was experimented as a
science instrument for various
researches. From China, the
kite was reproduced
throughout Asia, then later, in
Europe, and now, in the
modern age, in America,
Australia and other countries.
In 1752, Benjamin Franklin
proved that there was
electricity in storm clouds. He
flew a kite with a brass key
tied to the end of his line
during a thunderstorm. He
proved his theory true when
the stormy atmosphere struck
the kite line and traveled
down to the key where it
caused a spark of electricity.
This was a very dangerous
experiment because if
Benjamin Franklin had been
wet he could have been badly
hurt!
In 1903 the Wright Brothers
were experimenting with large
box kites. These experiments
led to the first airplane at
Kitty Hawk. Box kites were
also helpful in predicting the
weather. From 1898 to 1993
kite stations flew box kites
equipped with weather-
measuring devices.
Kites & Science
American diplomat and
scientist Benjamin Franklin
experimented with kites to
investigate atmospheric
electricity, and kite studies
were also made by the
American physicist and
inventor Alexander Graham
Bell.
Beginning in the 1890's and
continuing for about 40 years,
box kites, consisting of two or
more connected open-ended
boxes, were used for sending
meteorologic instruments aloft
to measure wind velocity,
temperature, barometric
pressure, and humidity.
Kites from HQ PowerKites, Go Fly A Kite, Premier Kites and Designs. For beginner and expert. Kites listed under Categories in the left column.