The MX-311 Water Bullet is designed to be hoisted
vertically to
elevations up to 3 miles, released and allowed to free fall, and
finally smash-land into water - eventually, after further testing, with
Maximus inside. The higher it goes, the faster it falls, with
estimated impact speeds of 60-220 miles per hour - if dropped from
three miles, the craft will actually break the sound barrier. The
four-fin design grips the rushing air and allows the Water Bullet to be
steered from within, making it a controlled crash planned for various
fresh-water locations around the world. The impact site is
marked by a GPS satellite system to make it as accurate as possible and
a circle of buoys on the water's surface will also guide the craft as
well as caution those below.
Upon impact, a sensor in the very tip of the Water Bullet engages eight
mini-cannons that blast hundreds of biodegradable pellets into the
water to break the surface tension and start moving it in a forward
motion. High-pressure air tanks inside the tip assembly inject air
through rings on the nose and create a tunnel for the Water Bullet to
travel through. Over 1440 springs on slide rails absorb the estimated
1.8 million pounds of kinetic energy; the 14 spring-loaded slide rails
inside the airtight polycarbonate shell make the craft a tandem set of
mechanical displacement systems sharing the massive load on impact.
After plunging
to depths of 45-60 feet, air tanks will fill two air bags mounted
inside the crown of the Bullet and bring it to the surface to be fished
out by the winch and crew on board the catamaran-style barge. The
MX-311
experimental aircraft is the first of its kind, the first prototype in
the world, and Maximus is the first person to publicly attempt this
stunt. |