Parachutes Does Size Matter???

1. 2019-20
PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT
ON
PARACHUTES: DOES SIZE MATTER
BY;
NAME:LIKHITH PUJARI
CLASS: 12

2. 2019-20
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
A successful project can never be prepared by the single effort
of the person to whom project is assigned, but it also demand
the help and guardianshipof some conversant person who
helps in the undersigned actively or passively in the completion
of a successful project.
With great pleasure I express my gratitude to our Lecturer Mr.
Sumedh Reddy without whose help this would not have been
completed. They have given their precioussuggestions and
constructive guidancehas been indispensablein the
completionof this project work.
I would also like to thank the staff of Sri ChaitanyaTechno
School-Nagarbhavi.They have supported me in this endeavor
and appreciatedme in my efforts during my project.
Last but not the least I also thank of Principal Sir and all the
other persons involveddirectly or indirectly to do my project
without which this wouldn’thave been possible
LIKHITH PUJARI

3. 2019-20
INDEX
1. Certificate of excellence
2. Acknowledgement
3. Aim of the project
4. Introduction
5. Theory
6. What shape are parachutes?
7. Parts of a parachute
8. How a parachute works? And small
fact
9. Materials used and process of making
[pictures]
10. Observation & conclusion
11. Bibliography
AIM:

4. 2019-20
To determine, if the size of a parachute canopy affects
the amount of acceleration in a descent.
INTRODUCTION:
A SMALL HISTORY:
Have you ever wondered when parachuteswere invented, or
what do you need to skydive? Would you think that size, shape,
or weight of a parachute would matter? Well, if you have or
haven’t, read this paper, and after, you will be a parachute
know it all. When were parachutesinvented?Leonardo da Vinci
invented parachutesin the 1400s. Parachutes then had frames
(supports made of wood), but now they don’t.
Parachutes had frames because they needed support to fly. The
oldest parachutehad a bar the person held onto that was also
used as a frame to support it. Other testers and inventorsof
early parachuteswere Faust Vrancic and Jean Pierre Blanchard.
The first use of a frameless parachute was in 1797, by Andre
Garnerin. Garnerin and other jumpers jumped from hot air
balloonsat 8,000 feet. What are parachutesused for?
Parachutes today are used for recreation as well as by the
armed forces. The armed forces drop equipment attachedto a
parachute off a plane and the equipment landson the ground.
They also parachute soldiers onto the battlefield.Also, when a

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plane is damaged, the pilot can eject and open a parachute. The
pilot then parachutes to the ground.
For recreational purposes, you have to be at least 18 years old
to go aloneor 16 with a parent or guardian. You also have to be
less than 230 pounds, and be in good shape. You have to be a
member of a club or a team to go skydiving. You also have to
train to skydive, so you know how to deal with an emergency.
Parachutes come in many shapes and sizes. One important
question is what makes parachutesfly? A parachute flies
because its large top creates a force called drag. Drag is when
you are descending, but the air aroundyou is “pullingyou
back”.
The parachutethen glides down to the ground and delivers its
load or person. No matter what shape or size, the parachute
will alwayshave drag, however, I discovered through my
experiment that a larger parachute has more drag. You may ask
why. The larger surface area of the parachute causes more
drag. It doesn’t matter what shape the parachute is, the larger
the parachute, the more drag it will have. Parachutes are also
made from many materials. The best material is silk, because it
is light, strong, and it doesn’t break easily. Although silk is the
best material, parachutes are also made out of fabric or nylon.
The material of the parachute may also affect its fall. If the
material is heavier, it will fall faster. Although I didn’t test

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different materials, I did discover that addingweight to the
parachute makes it fall faster. One commonly asked question is
what makes a parachute fall? A parachutefalls because of the
force of gravity. Gravity is the force that makes an object fall
when thrown up or dropped. Also, when the weight of the
parachute is increased, the parachutewill fall faster than
normal. One good question is what are the best conditionsto
skydive in? The best conditionsare when there is little wind,
and few clouds.
Otherwise, you have to be prepared to deal with extra effort to
land in the designated landingspot. You would have to look at
the local winds aloft forecast, look for cloud movement, or look
at a windsock. You also have to watch out for turbulence and
thunderstorms. What is the best height to jump from when
skydiving? There are five categories, which determine which
height you jump from. When you skydive for the first time, you
are classified as a category one skydiver. You jump from a
height of 3,500 feet. A category five or up jumper would jump
at 5,000 feet. A category 6-8 jumper would learn to do tricks
before opening the parachute. What can go wrong with a
parachute, a safety expert may ask. A parachutemay not
release, or it can fall off your back.
When a parachute doesn’t release, a safety parachute will
deploy. Sometimes the backup parachute will malfunction,but

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this happensvery rarely. You can prevent this by doing a careful
safety check. The average fatality rate for skydiving per year in
the U.S is 1 in 175,851 jumps. Could we do something to make
parachutesmore accurate? No, it dependson the jumper’s skill.
The jumper has to open the parachute at the right time and
have the right distance. What are some interesting facts about
parachutesand skydiving? Some interesting facts parachutes
are the largest parachute has a diameter of 52 feet, for the
Curiosity rover’s landingon Mars.
Another interesting fact is that the highest height someone has
jumped from is 128,000 feet above Earth, at the border of
Earth’s atmosphere and space. My conclusionof this project
and paper is that parachutesare used for many things, they can
be made out of different materials, and parachuteshave many
pros and cons. Also, I learned many cool facts about parachutes
and skydiving.
WHAT ACTUALLY IS A PARACHUTE?
A parachute uses drag to slow something moving in air. It is
often an umbrellashaped device on which people or things can
float slowly and safely down to the ground from a great height,
such as an aircraft.
The word parachute comes from the French words parer
meaning to protect and chute meaning fall carefully down
making sure you are safe. Drogue parachutesare used to aid

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horizontaldeceleration of a vehicle (a fixed-wing aircraft, or a
drag racer), or to provide stability(tandem free-fall, or space
shuttle after touchdown).
Parachutes are used in a sport called skydiving. Paratroopers
are soldiers who attack by jumping from an airplane.
The word "parachute"comes from "para",meaning "against" or
"counter" in Ancient Greek, and "chute", the French word for
"fall". In many other languages, the word refers to "falling-
screen", such as German Fallschirm. Some modern parachutes
are classified as semi-rigid wings, which are maneuverableand
can make a controlleddescent to break on impact with the
ground.
The inventorLeonardo Da Vinci sketched a parachute in his
Codex Atlanticus(fol. 381v), in about 1485. Leonardo's canopy
was held open by a square wooden frame. The feasibilityof
Leonardo's pyramidaldesign was successfully tested in 2000 by
the Briton Adrian Nicholasand again in 2008 by another
skydiver. According to the historianof technology Lynn White,
these conical and pyramidaldesigns, much more elaboratethan
early artistic jumps with rigid parasolsin Asia, mark "the origin
of the parachute as we know it".
THEORY:

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We know that Physics plays a vital role in many key
aspects of our life. From the things you see i.e.
optics to the things you use in your day to day life
for instance a pen when you walk friction in existed,
like many we come across Physics in all our day to
day life.
Now here we have come across the topic
Parachutes. As already said above about its history
and existence and how it’s made the concept used
is VISCOUS DRAG.
What is viscous drag?
It is the drag that is offered by the flow of air which is present is
the atmosphere.
This drag by the air is termed as viscous drag. This phenomenon
is the reason for the application ofparachutesin dailylife as a
source of recreation in high ranges and life saving device in case
of a plane crash.

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What shape are parachutes?
Traditionally, parachutes were round (dome-shaped) and, with their dangling
suspension lines, looked a bit like jellyfish as they fell. They had vent holes
that allowed air to escape, which helped to prevent them from rocking about
as they came down, and their lines provided very basic steering. Most modern
parachutes are rectangular (a design known as ram-air). They have a number
of cells that inflate as the air "rams" into them, so they form a fairly rigid,
curved airfoil wing, which is much more steerable and controllable than a
dome-shaped parachute. Round chutes are still widely used by military
paratroopers, because they work well for dropping lots of people together, in a
fairly small area, at relatively low altitudes; paratroopers are simply trying to
get to the ground quickly, not show off their skydiving technique. Recreational
divers, on the other hand, consider round chutes obsolete: virtually all of them
now use the ram-air design instead. Below represents a canopy type
parachute.

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What are the parts of a traditional, round parachute?
If you've ever seen a parachute spread out on the ground, you'll know it has
lots of separate parts, and it can be a very tricky thing to pack back into its
container so it opens correctly next time. What are all the bits and what do
they do? Here are some of the more important ones, but there are quite a few
more that I've missed out for clarity.
1. Pilot chute: A small parachute that opens the large, main parachute.
2. Bridle: Connects the pilot chute to the main chute.
3. Apex or top vent: Allows a slow escape of air from the top of the main
chute. This prevents air from leaking out of the sides of the canopy,
which tends to rock the parachute wildly as it falls.
4. Canopy: Main part of the parachute.
5. Skirt: Lower part of the canopy (think of a person's skirt hanging down).
6. Suspension lines: Spread the weight of the parachutist evenly across
the canopy.
7. Links: Connect the suspension lines to the risers.
8. Risers: Connect the links to the harness
9. Control lines: I've drawn only one, but there can be several different
ones for steering and braking.

12. 2019-20
10. Harness and container: The harness is the part you wear (itself
made of numerous components); the container looks similar to a
rucksack and holds the packed-up parachute and all its bits and pieces,
ready for action!
How does a parachute work in practice?
Skydivers make parachuting look easy, but it's all a bit more tricky in practice!
What you're trying to achieve is to get a large piece of super-strong material
opening out above and behind you in a perfectly uniform way when you've just
jumped from a plane screaming along maybe ten times faster than a race car!
How can you possibly pull something safely behind you under those
conditions?
Parachutes are actually three chutes in one, packed into a single backpack
called the container. There's a main parachute, a reserve parachute (in case
the main one fails), and a tiny little chute at the bottom of the container, called
the pilot chute, that helps the main chute to open. Once you're clear of the
plane, you trigger the pilot chute (either by pulling on a ripcord or simply by
throwing the pilot chute into the air). It rapidly opens up behind you, creating
enough force to tug the main chute from the container. The main chute has to
be carefully packed so the ropes that connect it to your harness (known
as suspension lines) open correctly and straighten out behind you. The main
chute is designed to open in a delayed way so your body isn't braked and
jerked too suddenly and sharply. That's safer and more comfortable for you
and it also reduces the risk of the parachute ripping or tearing.
The force on a parachute is considerable, so it has to be made from really
strong materials. Originally, parachutes were made from canvas or silk, but
inexpensive, lightweight, synthetic materials such as nylon and Kevlar® (a
chemical relative of nylon) are now generally used instead.
A small fact about a parachute!
What a drag!

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Photo: The Space Shuttle Endeavour, coming in to land on June 19, 2002. Photo courtesy of NASA Armstrong
Flight Research Center.
Using a parachute to bring a person safely to the ground from a plane is one
thing. But what if you had to bring an entire plane to rest the same way? That
was the challenge facing NASA every time the Space Shuttle (the reusable
space plane, now-retired) came back to Earth.
During its launch phase, the Shuttle had a powerful main engine and rocket
boosters to power it into space. But when it came back again, it was nothing
but a glider, drifting through the air and counting on its stubby wings to carry it
home.
Once it was safely back inside Earth's atmosphere, the Shuttle hit its 4.5km
(2.8mile) long landing strip at about 350km/h (220mph)—rather faster than a
typical jet airplane (which lands at speeds more like 240km/h or 150mph).
When the wheels were on the ground, the crew applied the brakes to bring the
craft safely to a halt, but they also used a horizontal parachute called a drag
chute to help. It was about 12m (40ft) across and helped to cut the Shuttle's
speed by about 75 percent before it was jettisoned.
Materials required:
1.Plastic cover

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2.Some toys

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3.Threads
4. Tapes

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THE PROCESS OF MAKING:
There are two parts to my method.
Part 1:
My method has 2 parts, 1, showing the process used to
make a parachute, and 2 how to do the experiment itself.
Part 1:
1. Take a plastic bag and cut a large circle in it.
2. Cut the circle out and mark five pointswith a pen
equallyapart from each other around the circle.
3. Poke the 5 pointsout of the circle and put a string with
a length of 60 cm centimeters in each hole.
4. Do steps 1-3 again twice but each time make the circles
smaller.
For the third time make the string length 30 centimeters.
Part 2
1. Take another person and ask them to record the time it
takes each Parachute to fall from the same point of height.
When dropping them, do it from the top of a staircase, or
on a balconyor roof.
2. Drop each parachute 2 twice with a weight attached to
it, and records the results.
3. Finally,put the results on a chart or graph.

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SOME PICTURES OF THE MAKING:

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Observation
Circle Parachute Using Wooden Man
Circle Parachute Using ghost man

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Triangle Parachute Using toy car
Conclusion:
My hypothesis at the start of this project was that the largest
parachute would create the most drag, so size would matter. I
found through my experiment that this hypothesis was correct.
My hypothesis is correct because a larger parachute has more
surface area, which creates more drag against gravity, and creates
more air resistance. The largest parachute still took the longest
time to drop whether it was triangular or circular, because the
shapes were roughly the same surface area. I also changed the
weight to see if it affected my hypothesis, but my hypothesis still
remained correct, because the largest parachute still took the
longest time to drop (Although the lighter weight took longer.) In
conclusion, size does matter, and the largest parachute does take
the longest to drop, and if you want a safe landing that is the one
you need to choose.

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Bibliography:
1. Internet(www.1000scienceprojects.com)
2. Wikipedia
3. Library
4. Physics faculty

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THANK YOU