As an adult, Steven Barrett of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology focused on a concept called "ionic wind."
For the MIT airplane, that involves a series of thin wires at the front of the plane that generates a powerful electric field. The field strips electrons from air molecules, turning the molecules into positively charged particles called ions. Those ions flow toward negatively charged parts of the plane, colliding with ordinary air molecules and transferring energy to them. That produces a wind that provides thrust for the plane, Barrett explained.
For the MIT airplane, that involves a series of thin wires at the front of the plane that generates a powerful electric field. The field strips electrons from air molecules, turning the molecules into positively charged particles called ions. Those ions flow toward negatively charged parts of the plane, colliding with ordinary air molecules and transferring energy to them. That produces a wind that provides thrust for the plane, Barrett explained.
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