November 1, 2014
1 min read
Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAmWatch the Record-Setting Flight of "Atlas," the Human-Powered Helicopter
"Atlas" soars to win flight competition, propelled by four giant rotors and an athletic designer pedaling a bicycle
By Josh Fischman
Two young Canadian engineers, Cameron Robertson and Todd Reichert, built a giant but lightweight helicopter in 2013. Powered by Reichert, who was suspended under the rotors on a bicycle frame, pedaling hard, "Atlas" took to the air and hovered for just over a minute, winning the coveted Sikorsky Prize, which had eluded aeronautical designers since the 1980s.
On supporting science journalism
If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
>> View all Atlas helicopter videos here
Subscribe to Support Independent Journalism
Great science journalism requires human expertise, time, effort and creativity. And it costs money. That’s why I and the journalists here at Scientific American hope you’ll join our community.
When you subscribe, you are supporting staff and freelance journalists who are passionate about telling science stories that are true, important and compelling. Our editors and reporters are often experts in their fields, which means they understand the nuances of big discoveries and can untangle the breakthroughs from the hype. With a subscription, you are also supporting rigorous fact-checking to ensure the words we publish are precise and accurate. And you’re supporting original illustrations, graphics and photos that bring you closer to an advanced laboratory, an ice sheet in Antarctica or a space mission in orbit. You’re helping us craft other types of high-quality journalism as well: Our newsletters are carefully written, edited and curated by staffers you have or will come to know and love. Our Science Quickly podcast is based on original reporting, collaboration with editors and scientists and exacting production.
Subscriptions keep this engine running so we can continue to deliver thoughtful, rigorous and independent science journalism to you. In an era of viral misinformation, this work is crucial. If you value what we do, I hope you’ll consider joining us as a subscriber