Parachute facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This page is about the device. For sports and other activities involving a parachute, see Parachuting. For other uses, see Parachute (disambiguation).

Paratroopers deploying their parachutes during an exercise

A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, who can exit from an aircraft at height and descend safely to earth.

A parachute is usually made of a light, strong fabric. Early parachutes were made of silk. The most common fabric today is nylon. A parachute's canopy is typically dome-shaped, but some are rectangles, inverted domes, and other shapes.

A variety of loads are attached to parachutes, including people, food, equipment, space capsules, and bombs.

History
How it works
Types of parachutes
Numbers and facts
Records
Images for kids
See also

History

RAF Typhoon using a drogue parachute for braking after landing.

The Apollo 15 spacecraft landed safely despite a parachute line failure in 1971.

The idea of slowing a fall with a large surface area has been around for a long, long time! Even Leonardo da Vinci, a super-smart inventor who lived hundreds of years ago (around 1452-1519), sketched designs for parachutes. He imagined a pyramid-shaped parachute made of linen, a type of strong cloth. But his designs weren't actually tested until much later.

In 1783, a French physicist named Louis-Sébastien Lenormand made the first successful parachute jump. He used a linen umbrella-shaped parachute and jumped from a tall building. It wasn't a super-high jump, but it was a huge step. He even wrote a book about his experiment, sharing his knowledge with others.

In 1837, a French balloonist named André-Jacques Garnerin made the first parachute jump from a hot air balloon. This was a much higher jump, and it showed that parachutes could be used to escape from balloons safely. He even made several jumps to show how well his parachute worked. He made many jumps, demonstrating the parachute's reliability. He experimented with different parachute shapes and sizes.

The 1900s saw huge advancements in parachute technology. World War I (1914-1918) and World War II (1939-1945) were times when parachutes became incredibly important. Soldiers needed a way to safely jump out of airplanes, and parachutes were the answer. This led to many improvements in parachute design, making them stronger, more reliable, and easier to use. Thousands of soldiers relied on parachutes to save their lives during these wars. The development of nylon, a strong and lightweight material, was a game-changer for parachute production. It made parachutes lighter and more durable.

How it works

Parachutes work because of something called air resistance. Imagine throwing a sheet of paper and a rock. The rock falls much faster because the rock has less air resistance. Air resistance is the force that air puts on something as it moves through the air.

A parachute is designed to create a lot of air resistance. Its large surface area slows down the fall. The bigger the parachute, the more air it catches, and the slower the descent. Think of it like this: a big, wide parachute is like a giant hand pushing against the air, slowing you down.

The shape of the parachute is also important. Most parachutes are round or square, but some are rectangular or even have special shapes for specific purposes. The shape helps to distribute the air resistance evenly, making the descent smooth and controlled.

Types of parachutes

There are many different types of parachutes, each designed for a specific purpose.

Round: These are the classic, umbrella-shaped parachutes. They're simple and reliable, but they can be a bit bumpy during the descent. They were commonly used in the past and are still used in some situations.

Square: These parachutes have a more rectangular shape and are often used for cargo drops. They are designed to deliver supplies accurately and safely.

Ram-Air parachutes: These are more modern parachutes that use vents to inflate and control the airflow. They allow for more precise steering and maneuvering during the descent. They are commonly used by skydivers for more controlled landings.

Parafoils: These are wing-shaped parachutes that are very maneuverable. They are often used in paragliding, a sport where people fly using wing-shaped parachutes.

Emergency Parachutes: These are small, lightweight parachutes designed for emergency situations. They are often used in airplanes and helicopters as a backup safety system.

Numbers and facts

Deployment time: A typical parachute takes about 2-3 seconds to fully open after deployment.

Descent speed: The descent speed of a parachute depends on its size and shape, but it's usually around 15-20 feet per second (about 10-13 mph).

Materials: Modern parachutes are often made from strong, lightweight materials like nylon or ripstop nylon. Ripstop nylon is a special type of nylon that has reinforced threads to prevent tears from spreading.

Weight capacity: The weight capacity of a parachute varies depending on its size and design. Some parachutes can carry hundreds of pounds of cargo, while others are designed for a single person.

Safety features: Many modern parachutes have reserve parachutes as a backup in case the main parachute fails. This provides an extra layer of safety for skydivers and cargo.

Training: People who use parachutes, like skydivers, receive extensive training to learn how to use them safely and effectively. This training covers everything from packing the parachute to emergency procedures.

Records

A jumper in free-fall in Venezuela with his parachute on his back

On August 16, 1960, Joseph Kittinger, in the Excelsior III test jump, set the previous world record for the highest parachute jump. He jumped from a balloon at an altitude of 102,800 feet (31,333 m) (which was also a piloted balloon altitude record at the time). A small stabilizer chute deployed successfully, and Kittinger fell for 4 minutes and 36 seconds, also setting a still-standing world record for the longest parachute free-fall, if falling with a stabilizer chute is counted as free-fall. At an altitude of 17,500 feet (5,300 m), Kittinger opened his main chute and landed safely in the New Mexico desert. The whole descent took 13 minutes and 45 seconds. During the descent, Kittinger experienced temperatures as low as −94 °F (−70 °C). In the free-fall stage, he reached a top speed of 614 mph (988 km/h or 274 m/s), or Mach 0.8.

According to Guinness World Records, Yevgeni Andreyev, a colonel in the Soviet Air Force, held the official FAI record for the longest free-fall parachute jump (without drogue chute) after falling for 24,500 m (80,380 ft) from an altitude of 25,457 m (83,523 ft) near the city of Saratov, Russia on November 1, 1962, until broken by Felix Baumgartner in 2012.

Felix Baumgartner broke Joseph Kittinger's record on October 14, 2012, with a jump from an altitude of 127,852 feet (38,969.3 m) and reaching speeds up to 833.9 mph (1,342.0 km/h or 372.8 m/s), or nearly Mach 1.1. Kittinger was an advisor for Baumgartner's jump.

Alan Eustace made a jump from the stratosphere on October 24, 2014, from an altitude of 135,889.108 feet (41,419 m). However, because Eustace's jump involved a drogue parachute while Baumgartner's did not, their vertical speed and free fall distance records remain in different record categories.

Images for kids

The oldest known depiction of a parachute, by an anonymous author (Italy, 1470s)
Louis-Sébastien Lenormand jumps from the tower of the Montpellier observatory, 1783. Illustration from the late 19th century.
The first use of a frameless parachute, by André Garnerin in 1797
Schematic depiction of Garnerin's parachute, from an early nineteenth-century illustration.
Picture published in the Dutch magazine De Prins der Geïllustreerde Bladen (18 February 1911).
Gleb Kotelnikov and his invention, the knapsack parachute
Albert Berry collapses his parachute on Kinloch Field at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, after his jump on 1 March 1912.
A picture of Štefan Banič's design
Kite balloon observers preparing to descend by parachute.
Ben Turner making a parachute jump from a plane at Camden, Sydney, 14 August 1938.
1970s 'high performance' pull-down apex canopy, as seen in the 'round' (or really, elliptical) parachute's centre.
1970s 'round' elliptical showing 4 controllable turn slots, plus another, small side vent and one of 5 rear vents.
The Mars Science Laboratory capsule, carrying the Mars rover Curiosity, descending under its supersonic disk-gap-band parachute.
Paragliding at Cochrane hill, AB, Canada, 1991. An APCO Starlite 26.
Apco Starlite 26 paraglider launch inflating cells by pulling up top risers
Paragliding over Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2015
Animation of 3-ring release system used by a skydiver to cut away the main parachute. It utilizes a mechanical advantage of 200 to 1.
A United States Navy Parachute Team "Leap Frogs" jumper landing a "square" ram-air parachute.