Aerospace
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
Please help improve this article by expanding this section. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. Please remove this message once the section has been expanded. This article has been tagged since March 2007. |
- This article is about the field of research and industry; for the corporation, see The Aerospace Corporation
Aerospace comprises air and space travel, manufacturing and associated research. Aerospace is a very diverse industry, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications.
Aerospace is not the same as airspace, which is a term used to describe the physical air space directly above a location on the ground.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
In most industrial countries, the aerospace industry is a cooperation of public and private industries. For example, several countries have a space program under the command of the government, such as NASA in the United States, ESA in Europe, the Canadian Space Agency in Canada, Indian Space Research Organisation in India, RKA in Russia, China National Space Administration in China, and Iranian Space Agency in Iran.
Along with these public space programs, many companies produce technical tools and components such as spaceships and satellites. Some known companies involved in space programs include Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, EADS, and Boeing. These companies are also involved in other areas of aerospace such as the construction of aircraft. Many countries have air transport companies, such as Air France and Air India.
[edit] History
The field of aerospace has been investigated for centuries but it can be said that modern aerospace began with the first powered flight at Kitty Hawk on December 17, 1903, by the Wright brothers. From there, aerospace has grown to be one of the most exciting, diverse, and fast paced fields of today. From the hot-air balloons of 18th century to the first wood-and-cloth plane of Wilbur and Orville Wright to the first trip to the moon on Apollo 11 to the new and exciting aircraft being developed by companies like Boeing, Airbus, and Bombardier, aerospace has come a long way in a little over a century.
[edit] Aerospace Manufacturing
 |
This article or section deals primarily with the United States and does not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page. |
Aerospace manufacturing is an industry that produces "aircraft, guided missiles, space vehicles, aircraft engines, propulsion units, and related parts," according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Web site. Most of the industry is geared toward governmental work. In the United States, the Department of Defense and NASA are the two biggest consumers of aerospace technology and products. The BLS reported that the aerospace industry employed 444,000 wage and salary jobs in 2004. Most of those jobs were in Washington and California.
Important locations of the civil aerospace industry worldwide include Seattle (Boeing), Montreal in Canada (Bombardier), Toulouse in France and Hamburg in Germany (both Airbus).
As of June 2005, the top-performing US aerospace companies, as ranked by Aviation Week & Space Technology, were:
- United Technologies Corporation
- General Dynamics Corp.
- L-3 Communications
- Honeywell International Inc.
- Parker Hannifin
- Computer Sciences Corp.
- Thales Group
- Lockheed Martin Corp.
- Northrop Grumman Corp.
- Boeing
[edit] See also
- Aeronautics
- Astronautics
- Aerospace engineering
- Atmospheric reentry
- General aviation
- Space exploration
- Spacecraft
- Aviation, aerospace, and aeronautical terms
[edit] Invest in Aerospace
Here is a list of publicy traded Aerospace Corporations:
- E'Prime Aerospace Corporation Ticker name EPEA
[edit] External links
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) - U.S.
- European Space Agency (ESA) - E.U.
- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) - Japan
- BLS site on aerospace industry
- Aerospace Industries Association
- American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
- Federal Aviation Administration
- The British Library - finding information on the aerospace industry
- Aerospace Manufacturing Solutions
- Iranian Aerospace Industries Organization
- American Helicopter Society
- Example of Aerospace Design
- Up and Coming Publicly Traded Aerospace Corporation
- Machine Tool Manufacturers´ of Spain (AFM) for aerospace industry
