Is Human Flight Possible?

[jeremylorino]

Is human flight possible? I'm not talking about flapping your wings. I'm talking about flying like Superman. I think it's possible. Does anyone have an explanation? I fly all the time in my dreams and I feel like I could fly in real life. Please be serious about this post because I am.

 

[Evo]

No. But I'll let some other members respond before I lock this.

 

[Danger]

The only mechanism of propulsion would be super-flatulence. Do you really want a fart of Kryptonian proportions let loose on our planet?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Is human flight possible? I'm not talking about flapping your wings. I'm talking about flying like Superman. I think it's possible. Does anyone have an explanation? I fly all the time in my dreams and I feel like I could fly in real life. Please be serious about this post because I am.

Watch this!


Superman is supposed to fly based on powers that we don't understand. So the answer is, first, yes, we can fly like jetman, as linked above, and we could fly like superman if we discovered some means of flight that we don't currently recognize, but that allows flight like superman, but in the end it would just be another version of jetman - it would be based on some sort of technology. Beyond that we are into questions like, can God make you fly, and we can't go there; nor do we want to.

 

[G01]

Is human flight possible? I'm not talking about flapping your wings. I'm talking about flying like Superman. I think it's possible. Does anyone have an explanation? I fly all the time in my dreams and I feel like I could fly in real life. Please be serious about this post because I am.

I suggest you don't test your hypothesis that you can fly in real life. It could turn out bad.

What you "feel" doesn't necessarily correspond to the truth. For example, I felt like I could sing, but I have been told otherwise.

(Evo, you must be having a boring Friday night to let this thread keep brewing.)

 

[B. Elliott]

You can take flying lessons...

 

[Evo]

I suggest you don't test your hypothesis that you can fly in real life. It could turn out bad.

What you "feel" doesn't necessarily correspond to the truth. For example, I felt like I could sing, but I have been told otherwise.

(Evo, you must be having a boring Friday night to let this thread keep brewing.)

Well, I was thinking that someone would explain from a practical standpoint that the human body is not aerodynamic and would pretty much defy known laws for a human to just lift off the ground and fly, especially without moving anybody parts (like superman). Even a bird won't fly if it doesn't move.

 

[rootX]

Is human flight possible? I'm not talking about flapping your wings. I'm talking about flying like Superman. I think it's possible. Does anyone have an explanation? I fly all the time in my dreams and I feel like I could fly in real life. Please be serious about this post because I am.

Yep, it is possible.

Birds couldn't fly millions of years ago?

 

[B. Elliott]

Taking the OP's question seriously, I suppose a human could fly like superman while on another body in the solar system. A small moon such as Phobos for instance. The gravity is low enough that if you were to start out by walking then slowly increased your pace, you could eventually jump high enough to put yourself into temporary orbit around Phobos. If you jumped hard enough, you could possibly surpass escape velocity completely.

 

[edward]

Some people will try anything;

 

[Evo]

Taking the OP's question seriously, I suppose a human could fly like superman while on another body in the solar system. A small moon such as Phobos for instance. The gravity is low enough that if you were to start out by walking then slowly increased your pace, you could eventually jump high enough to put yourself into temporary orbit around Phobos. If you jumped hard enough, you could possibly surpass escape velocity completely.

Yes, once we get pass the issues of atmosphere and temperature. For that matter just stick him in outer space and give him a push to get him moving.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

You can fly in a tornado.

 

[OAQfirst]

Just remember that originally, Superman could not fly as we see him do now, but only "leap tall buildings in a single bound."

But what I would like to know is if anyone has any idea how he shaves?

 

[DaveC426913]

Just remember that originally, Superman could not fly as we see him do now, but only "leap tall buildings in a single bound."

But what I would like to know is if anyone has any idea how he shaves?

Heat vision and a mirror?

 

[OAQfirst]

Heat vision and a mirror?

If he can cut/singe his own hair with that, makes me wonder how his eyelids fare during excitable dreams/nightmares...

 

[Danger]

But what I would like to know is if anyone has any idea how he shaves?

One issue of the comic that I have does indeed use that very approach that Dave suggested, with the mirror. In another, earlier, issue, it was stated that his hair and nails don't grow under a yellow sun.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I suggest you don't test your hypothesis that you can fly in real life. It could turn out bad.

What you "feel" doesn't necessarily correspond to the truth. For example, I felt like I could sing, but I have been told otherwise.

(Evo, you must be having a boring Friday night to let this thread keep brewing.)

And don't drop acid.

 

[B. Elliott]

And don't drop acid.

First thing that popped into my head.

 

[rcgldr]

My guess is somewhere between 250mph and 500mph would be fast enough that even a human body would make a descent wing, although some support may be required. It may have already been experience by a pilot ejecting from an aircraft during the short period of time between leaving the ejection seat and deploying the chute.

 

[Danger]

a human body would make a descent wing

It would indeed make a descent wing, but not a decent one.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

It's not flying exactly but probably as close as you're going to get without a jet pack or some sort of antigrav device...

 

[tavernarijare]

I believe the Wright Brothers heard the same thing from everyone when they proposed there flying device ... It will be ... I am actually putting together and will test some ideas to make this possible... I am currently in the design phase of creating a superman suite ... With all of Supermans powers ... the current problem we have is that a human can only run at 26 miles per hour before there knee pop out of socket/ and or break ... the flying idea will be done as seen in the iron man movie ... through jet thrust ... more of a suite than actually like superman but ... close ... the suite will be powered by thousands of solar cells ... solar cells are used in very expensive watches to make them last for a thousand years ... and of course using the suns energy to give the whole suite power ... As Superman receives his powers from the sun ...we will too ... Any comments or Ideas let me know ... Man has thrived on making the impossible, possible . Jesus walked on water ... Man can create a suite as a will ...

 

[maverick_starstrider]

Well, I was thinking that someone would explain from a practical standpoint that the human body is not aerodynamic and would pretty much defy known laws for a human to just lift off the ground and fly, especially without moving anybody parts (like superman). Even a bird won't fly if it doesn't move.

To be clear, according to original canon, superman's ability was not to "fly" but jump extraordinarily high.

 

[rootX]

I believe the Wright Brothers heard the same thing from everyone when they proposed there flying device ... It will be ... I am actually putting together and will test some ideas to make this possible... I am currently in the design phase of creating a superman suite ... With all of Supermans powers ... the current problem we have is that a human can only run at 26 miles per hour before there knee pop out of socket/ and or break ... the flying idea will be done as seen in the iron man movie ... through jet thrust ... more of a suite than actually like superman but ... close ... the suite will be powered by thousands of solar cells ... solar cells are used in very expensive watches to make them last for a thousand years ... and of course using the suns energy to give the whole suite power ... As Superman receives his powers from the sun ...we will too ... Any comments or Ideas let me know ... Man has thrived on making the impossible, possible . Jesus walked on water ... Man can create a suite as a will ...

I believe you are wrong ...

 

[tavernarijare]

http://www.bird-man.com/video/Rocket_Bird_iNet.wmv a more advanced idea of this video ...

 

[tavernarijare]

what am i wrong about ... Jesus not walking on water ?

 

[Danger]

what am i wrong about ... Jesus not walking on water ?

That would be the one. I can't walk on water either, but I've been known to run on alcohol for extended periods.
Actually, anybody who can walk at all can walk on water. Just wait for winter.

 

[Huckleberry]

If you never wake up you can fly all you want. If you can find some way of putting your hands under your feet and lifting yourself up, that would work too. But first make sure to videorecord it with an explanation of what you are doing and post it on youtube.

Superman is lame. He'd be much cooler if he couldn't shave at all and had to fly around looking like Grizzly Adams in tights.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

Since that link doesn't work any more.

 

[tavernarijare]

If you never wake up you can fly all you want. If you can find some way of putting your hands under your feet and lifting yourself up, that would work too. But first make sure to videorecord it with an explanation of what you are doing and post it on youtube.

Superman is lame. He'd be much cooler if he couldn't shave at all and had to fly around looking like Grizzly Adams in tights.

If superman was lame he would act something like you ... Superman is bad *** ... also the thrusters are a work in progress ... goin to run bendable copper pipes to remove any heat ... work as a computer heatsink does ...

 

[tavernarijare]

you guys need to quit disrespecting too ... for you know know not what you say ... read a history book

 

[Sorry!]

you guys need to quit disrespecting too ... for you know know not what you say ... read a history book

I don't know why. But this post cracked me up.

@OP, I don't think superman FLIED but he could JUMP really far. As it's been pointed out we could do this as well if we traveled somewhere with significantly less gravity.

 

[leroyjenkens]

I don't know why. But this post cracked me up.

@OP, I don't think superman FLIED but he could JUMP really far. As it's been pointed out we could do this as well if we traveled somewhere with significantly less gravity.

Superman flies. How can you change direction in a jump?

 

[Sorry!]

Superman flies. How can you change direction in a jump?

So when a glider launches themselves off of a cliff they just glide back to Earth in a straight line and have no control?

(Superman wore a cape)

 

[leroyjenkens]

So when a glider launches themselves off of a cliff they just glide back to Earth in a straight line and have no control?

(Superman wore a cape)

The cape just fluttered there, it's not like it's a wing he has control over.
If you're going to include apparatus, you could just use a jetpack. Or you could jump onto an airplane as it's taking off and include all the maneuvering the airplane is doing as part of your jump.
Besides, you can obviously tell Superman flies when he lightly lifts off of the ground and flies slowly up into the sky. He's done that several times in the movies.
None of you actually believe all that flying he does is just a jump, do you?