science

Northrop Grumman Switchblade

Northrop Grumman Switchblade is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Northrop Grumman Switchblade rather than just read about it. In short: The Northrop Grumman Switchblade was a proposed variable sweep oblique wing unmanned aerial vehicle studied by Northrop Grumman for the United States. The program was canceled in 2008, without any aircraft having flown.

Key takeaways

Northrop Grumman Switchblade belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Northrop Grumman Switchblade to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Northrop Grumman Switchblade from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Northrop Grumman Switchblade was a proposed variable sweep oblique wing unmanned aerial vehicle studied by Northrop Grumman for the United States. The program was canceled in 2008, without any aircraft having flown.

History During WWII, Messerschmitt and Blohm + Voss studied the variable-geometry oblique wing as a solution for high-speed jet aircraft, respectively as Messerschmitt P.1109 and Blohm & Voss P 202. From 1979 to 1982, NASA successfully flew the piloted AD-1 demonstrator aircraft which validated the concept. The United States Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) subsequently awarded Northrop Grumman a US$10.3 million contract for risk reduction and preliminary planning for an oblique flying wing demonstrator. The program aimed at producing a technology demonstrator aircraft to explore the various challenges which radical design entails. The proposed aircraft would be a purely flying wing (an aircraft with no other auxiliary surfaces such as tails, canards, or a fuselage) where the wing is swept with one side of the aircraft forward, and one backwards in an asymmetric fashion. This aircraft configuration is believed to give it a combination of high speed, long range and long endurance. The program entailed two phases. Phase I explored the theory and result in a conceptual design, while Phase II would have resulted in the design, manufacture, and flight test of an aircraft. The outcome of the program would have resulted in data which could then be used when considering future military aircraft designs. Flight of the Switchblade was scheduled for 2020 with its 61-meter long oblique wing perpendicular to its engines like a typical aircraft. As the aircraft increased speed, the wing begins to pivot, so that when it breaks the sound barrier, its wing has swiveled 60 degrees, with one wingtip pointing forward and the other backward. The change in aerodynamics and the general structure would have made the aircraft very difficult to control for a human being. The plane was to be fully controlled by an onboard computer controlling flight parameters. Following Phase I the aircraft concept was cancelled in 2008.

Specifications General characteristics

Wingspan: 200 ft 2 in (61 m) Performance

Maximum speed: Mach 2 Range: 5,000 nmi (5,800 mi, 9,300 km) Service ceiling: 60,000 ft (18,000 m)

See also History of unmanned aerial vehicles Robert T. Jones Unmanned combat aerial vehicle

References

Rose, Bill, 2010. Secret Projects: Flying Wings and Tailless Aircraft. Hinckley, England: Midland Publishing

External links Popular Science: Switchblade Archived 2006-06-21 at the Wayback Machine DARPA project information Info on the NASA and DARPA oblique wing research programs

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Northrop Grumman Switchblade

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Northrop Grumman Switchblade claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Northrop Grumman Switchblade before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Northrop Grumman Switchblade ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Northrop Grumman Switchblade

In research: Northrop Grumman Switchblade appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Northrop Grumman Switchblade in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Northrop Grumman Switchblade is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Abandoned military aircraft engine projects of the United States, DARPA, Northrop Grumman aircraft, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Northrop Grumman Switchblade outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Northrop Grumman Switchblade in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Northrop Grumman Switchblade means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Northrop Grumman Switchblade out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Northrop Grumman Switchblade in simple terms?

Why does Northrop Grumman Switchblade matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Northrop Grumman Switchblade?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Northrop Grumman Switchblade.