A new technology that enables aircraft to fold their wings to different angles while in flight was successful in recent flight tests, NASA has reported. The tests took place at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in California, as part of the Spanwise Adaptive Wing project. Folding wings have been tried in the past, NASA said, notably with the North American XB-70 Valkyrie in the 1960s. However, the ability to bend wings in flight was dependent on heavy and bulky motors and hydraulics. The new technology uses a cutting-edge, lightweight shape-memory alloy that moves in response to heat, activating a twisting motion that moves the wing's outer portion up or down by up to 70 degrees. The new technology weighs up to 80 percent less than the traditional system. It can be used in either subsonic or supersonic flight, NASA said.
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