The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-03-24
GIANT SIGNAL KITES.
NOVEL EXPERIMENTS IN AERIAL
WORK AT FORT LOGAN.

Bs sent Into the Air with Very slsn-
der Supports.
A mile In the air with nothing above
but couple Of kites and only a slender
steel cable below will be the experience
Of the signal sergeants at Fort Logan,
Colo, within a few weeks-that is, il
will be the experience of any who care
to try it, for the men are engaged in
making six cellular kites 90 feet across
for use In army work.
For some weeks past the air above the
fort has at times been filed with strange
objects When % foot kite was sent
up recently, the soldiers gave a few
glances at it and then the novelty end
ed. In the signal details, however, the
novelty has not yet worn off, for the
original kite only served to stir up their
ambitions to excel every nation on earth
in utilizing this novel means for signal
ing. The 10 foot affair was built of hick-
DRY skeleton and silk dress. 1t had an
ascensive force almost equal to a balloon,
but it could not be relied upon for pull
ing upa human life. Dogs and cats were
sent up without trouble. and then it
was resolved TO construct half a dozen
kites larger than the experimental affair.
The object of having more than one
kite is more on account of safety than
real lifting power. With a steady breeze
two kites 25- feet across will pull an or
binary man up several thousand feet,
but there is always the element of the
wind freshening trife and swapping
the framework of the kites. With four
or more kites this danger is almost OBJ
waited. The strain on the cable is great.
er, but the pull on any individual kite
is less, for when one kite pulls more
than its share the probabilities are that
the strain will be diminished slightly
on the others, and together they pre-
serve balance.
As soon as the large kites are COM
pleted they will be tested singly by be-
ing sent up 1000 feet, and bags of sand
tied at intervals on the cable up to near
ly the lifting capacity of the kite itself
Then kites will be added one at time
until at least five are in tandem. A dy-
namometer will indicate the pull and
lifting power, while the speed of the
wind will be calculated as closely as
possible. In this manner important data
can be compiled which will be of ines
Unable value to the army. At the pres
emit time similar experiments as to wind
pull are being made at Sandy Hook, and
a comparison of the results will estab-
lish facts relative to the pulling power
OF wind at the same speed but Of differ |
ent densities due to altitude.
AS soon as the experiments demon
strate the safety of the apparatus Ser
geant Baldwin will make the initial |
trip. set of rigging is being con-
structed for him. 1t will consist of |
trapeZe SO suspended from the steel Ca
bic as to be free to swing across the |
line, but not in such manner as to give |
sudden strains. A telephone line will |
enable the aeronaut to communicate |
with those on the ground, while an ane-
roid barometer will tell him the exact |
height above the earth.
While there is no particular advan-
tage in the kites over the balloon in the |
matter of usefulness at any particular |
there are many other benefits |
The balloon is at its best when there is |
no wind, and it is almost useless in a |
stiff breeze. The kites are serviceable in I
all wind velocities up to 40 miles an
hour. They are extremely portable and |
can be sent up in much less time than
it requires to fill balloon. When pulled |
down, there is no time lost in packing
as in the balloon, where the gas is
pumped back into cylinders or allowed
to escape at great expense. Beyond the
wagons for transporting the kites there
is no other apparatus required except
the balloon wagon, which carries the
cable and windlass apparatus.
The work of the signal department at
Fort Logan Is receiving attention in
foreign lands. A few days ago the de-
partment received from Germany an ac-
count of experiments made there with
balloon and car made entirely of alu-
minimum. The "bag'' was Cigar shaped
and very thin, being internally braced |
SO as to prevent buckling under strains.
1t was the first successful attempt at
raising balloon of this nature, al
though in making the experiments the
cable was broken four times
by the careless handling of the operators
At Fort Logan there has never been an
accident due to carelessness for the rea-
son that nothing is done individually.
The men are trained and drilled to do
certain work according to tactics prear-
ranged, and thete is never any excite.
ment or hustle in any manner.
Although much success has attended
the experiments at the torpedo station
in the east, the work at Fort Logan is
being watched with much interest by
authorities, who are anxious
to determine just what may be expected
from kites when handled under the
most favorable circumstances by expert.
enced men.-Rocky Mountain News.