Forget about Jet Packs
How many decades have you been waiting for jet packs? Where are the jet packs? Are they reserved for James Bond?
Forget jet packs. NASA has leapfrogged the jet pack with a personal aircraft, the Electric Icarus, they call it, unofficially, and the Puffin, officially. It has electric motors, stands on its tail with four legs. It does a vertical take-off, hovers, and flies horizontally (of course, or what would be the point?). It's powered by rechargeable lithium phosphate batteries. The pilot lies prone during flight. It has no height ceiling since the engines aren't gasoline and so aren't affected by low oxygen. (The pilot might find a lack of oxygen inconvenient.)
It's a right handsome craft. To see a picture of it and learn more about it, see this Scientific American article on NASA's personal aircraft, the Puffin.
No mention of the estimated cost was given. If you have to ask...forget it. But you can write about it, no charge. You'd make quite a splash arriving in a Puffin to receive your Hugo award.
Forget jet packs. NASA has leapfrogged the jet pack with a personal aircraft, the Electric Icarus, they call it, unofficially, and the Puffin, officially. It has electric motors, stands on its tail with four legs. It does a vertical take-off, hovers, and flies horizontally (of course, or what would be the point?). It's powered by rechargeable lithium phosphate batteries. The pilot lies prone during flight. It has no height ceiling since the engines aren't gasoline and so aren't affected by low oxygen. (The pilot might find a lack of oxygen inconvenient.)
It's a right handsome craft. To see a picture of it and learn more about it, see this Scientific American article on NASA's personal aircraft, the Puffin.
No mention of the estimated cost was given. If you have to ask...forget it. But you can write about it, no charge. You'd make quite a splash arriving in a Puffin to receive your Hugo award.
