National Geographic Kids USA - May 2017

Getting caught in the rain is no fun. That’s where

the Oombrella comes in. This umbrella’s handle

contains a device that measures temperature,

air pressure, and humidity to predict exactly

when it’s going to rain. Connecting wirelessly to

erts you about

minutes before

first drops fall.

d don’t worry

out accidentally

ving this gear

a friend’s house

ce the skies clear.

Oombrella pings

hone if you’re

an 130 feet away

hat’s one unfor-

mbrella.

The Perlan 2 p

the ground to

even have an e

the two-passe

wingspan, abo

take off, this li

to another pla

Then it’s relea

extra-strong a

large wings an

data is collected on the atmosphere before pilots use

the glider’s airbrakes to descend. Glide on!

PANCAKE ART

Create art with pancake mix! The PancakeBot pro-

duces flapjacks shaped as the Eiffel Tower, George

Washington, Scooby-Doo, and more. First, use the

PancakeBot computer program to trace over a design

with the drawing tool. The movements are translated

into step-by-step instructions for the PancakeBot

to follow. Now just pour batter into the machine. The

bot’s electronic nozzle will squeeze the mixture onto

a heated griddle below, shifting as it follows the direc-

tions to create the flapjack formation. The result?

Pancakes that look almost too good to eat.

Gtti htii th ii ii ff Th

PREDICTS

WEATHER

Th P l lane will sweep you 17 miles off

the edge of space—and it doesn’t

engine, jets, orpropellers. What

enger gliderdoeshave is an 84 - foot

ut the length oftwo school buses. To

ightweight craft is connected bycable

ane and towed 10,000feet into the air.

sed over mountainous regions where

air currents buoy theplane under its

nd carry the craft 90,000 feet high. Here,

ted on the atmosphere before pilots use

ll ililll

Th ’h

AIRBUS (PERLAN 2 FLYING); MARTIN HELTAI OF PERLAN PROJECT (PERLAN 2 ON RUNWAY); PANCAKEBOT (PANCAKEBOT, PANCAKE CREATIONS); OOMBRELLA (UMBRELLA, PHONE ALERT)

BY C.M. TOMLIN

gg

your phone, it ale

1 5m

the

And

abo

lea

at a

onc

TheO

your ph

more tha

fromit.Th

gettable um

PILOT

BATTER GOES HERE

THE MACHINE MADE THESE RAIN ALERT!

PANCAKES!

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