Posted on 05/24/2010 10:48:42 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
A huge inflatable vehicle as long as a 23-floor skyscraper is tall has become the world's largest airship in its bid to serve as a stratospheric satellite, or "stratellite," according to its developers.
The 235-foot (72 m) long airship, known as the Bullet 580, has a top speed of 80 mph (129 km/h) and can serve as a high-flying sentinel that stays aloft for long periods of time. Getting the new sky behemoth inflated required six hours inside Garrett Coliseum in Montgomery, Ala.
"Our airships are radically different designs that move beyond the performance limitations of traditional blimps or zeppelins by combining advanced technology with simple construction and the ability to fuel with algae, protecting our environment," said Michael Lawson, chairman and CEO of E-Green Technologies.
The airship is designed to carry payloads of up to 2,000 pounds (907 kg) at altitudes of 20,000 feet (6,096 m). Any cargo aboard the airship would sit within an outer envelope made from a new type of Kevlar, or the same material used to build bulletproof vests. That allows the envelope to have a width just one-sixteenth of an inch thick, but still be 10 times stronger than steel.
Airships have undergone a resurgence of interest as both military and civilian operators eye their cost-efficient operations compared to traditional fixed-wing aircraft. But even the modern record-holder for size dwindles in comparison to airships back in their heyday, such as the 804-foot (245 m) Hindenberg.
E-Green Technologies considers the Bullet 580 as the first in a wave of airships in production for commercial use. It acquired the airship's developers, 21st Century Airships, in November 2009.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
“I haven’t heard a peep about this since.”
No one is moving cargo.
The length does not mean as much as the amount (cu-ft) of helium.
Honestly, I think it’s an image from a Video game, I’m not sure, but if the Germans had that thing and it flew can you imagine?
Honestly, I think it’s an image from a Video game, I’m not sure, but if the Germans had that thing and it flew can you imagine?
Is that a movie prop from the USSR version of Star Wars or something?
Check out the guy standing on the observation deck above the flight deck, and the cannon in the landing gear.
Kind of cool, actually, but I just don’t see it ever leaving the ground.
Here’s a great set of CGI images of the thing chasing a Nazi UFO, lol.
http://englishrussia.com/index.php/2009/01/25/russian-flying-fortresses/
What’s this anyway? Please provide a link.
Yeah, but the deer will see you coming for miles? lol
See #50. Beat me to it by a few seconds.
GMTA!
.
And here I thought it would be shaped like a giant electric guitar.
I think the biggest problems blimps have always had is storage, particularly from storms while being tethered on the ground. Their size to payload ratios just never seem
to make much sense.
Absolutely true, but again irrelevant to my point. There are one heck of a lot cheaper ways of slowly getting something from one place to another than using an airship.
Great, but how do they get it out?
wow
No one has posted “Oh, The Huge Manatee” pic yet? I can’t believe it!!!
As far as regular cargo carrying goes, I agree. There are still some applications for airships, but this isn’t it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.