Written by: Saba Aslam
Past, Present and Future of Kites
Kites may date back as far as 3000 years, where they were made from bamboo and silk in China. Exactly how or when a kite was first flown is a mystery, but one legend suggests that when a Chinese farmer tied a string to his hat to keep it from blowing away in a strong wind, the first kite was born.
The earliest written account of kite flying is in China in 200 BC, supporting China’s claim to the origin of the kite. The Chinese General Han Hsin of the Han Dynasty flew a kite over the walls of a city he was attacking to measure how far his army would have to tunnel to reach past the defences.
Kites are important in Chinese celebrations because they are decorative and festive, representing Chinese culture. As always, red is a colour often found on kites in China because this is one of the colours associated with good luck.
Kites are generally lightweight so that the wind can easily overcome gravity and lift the kite into the air. To get your kite into the air, the force of the lift must overcome the force of gravity holding the kite down; to keep it in the air, the force of thrust must be equal to the force of drag.
The tradition of kite flying in India is ancient and believed to have been brought into the country by Chinese travellers Huin Tsang and F Hien. The earlier Chinese kites were rectangular and flat. The passion for kite flying in India reached a zenith during the 18th century in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, which was also prominent for kite flying activities. It was known as Oudh, and the rulers of this region were the Nawabs.
The past kites were different from modern kites. They were flat and often rectangular. Past kites are made with materials made from natural fibers like paper, cotton cloth, and silk. Modern kites are made with materials like Nylon cloth, fiberglass, and fiber frames.
There are 5 types of kites nowadays. Foil Kites, C Kites, Bow Kites, Delta Kites, and Hybrid Kites. Foil Kites are very similar to parachutes. These kites consist of a number of air chambers giving the kite a pillow-like feel when it fills up with air.
Today, the most popular kind of kite is the Delta kite. It is a modern, typically single-line kite that is designed to fly well, and out-perform most other flat kites in light wind. Deltas are easy to handle and can be very eye-catching, which has led to its popularity.
A diamond kite is either flat or curved and is the classic shape we all think of as a kite shape. It is also called a Malay or Indian kite. Flat kites come in various shapes such as square or round. They are often used for trains of kites that are tied together to look like caterpillars or dragons. Tractions kites, also known as power kites, are large kites that are designed to provide significant pull.
Hybrid kites are a cross between C-kites and bow kites. Like bow kites, they incorporate bridles to support their leading edge. These bridles support the kite and enable designers to experiment with different arc profiles – some Hybrids can have a very flat arc, while some can look similar to a C-kite.
Kite flying is a very popular fun sport especially in China, Japan, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey and USA. It is not certain where the Kites first originated. Some believe it is originated in China while other think it is South Pacific Islanders who first originated the art of kite flying. Strong belief is accurate to China.
Sometimes I think, what is interesting in kites ? Or why should I choose this topic to write down ? So, kiting is an enjoyable and mind-blowing fun for kids, youngsters and adults. Flying a kite produces a very calming peaceful feeling, which definitely can reduce stress and promote mindfulness. It’s history is impressive when Kites have been used for human flight, military applications, science and meteorology, photography, lifting radio antennas, generating power, aerodynamics experiments, and much more.
Kite flying is a wonderful and peaceful pastime. They dance with the wind. I prefer the challenge of getting single line kites to perform. With a good breeze some will behave very dramatically swooping near to the ground and spinning in tight spirals with long trailing.
The people in Pakistan celebrate the Basant Kite Flying Festival with great pomp and show. The celebration takes place in the spring season. The beauty of the nature in the spring season adds to the festival it is a celebration of the starting of the season that is celebrated by flying colourful kites in the sky.
Festival of Basant kite flying is actually a Hindu festival that the people of the Punjab province started celebrating but as the days passed-on the festival became common among the people of the country and now it is a festival that the country celebrates every year.
Basant kite festival has celebrated in Lahore where a huge crowd including men, women and young people of all ages participate and there are various activities other than the Kite flying competitions take place. There are many things to shop for, various food items to taste, especially the Hindu and Pakistani food preparations. The sweet dishes are the main attraction of the festival that is really enjoyed by the tourists of foreign countries.
Basant Kite Flying Festival is an enjoyable experience for the people of the country as well as the People write their wishes, prayers and also regards to their God on the kite and make it fly high in the sky. Festival of Basant kite flying is actually a Hindu festival that the people of the Punjab province started celebrating but as the days passed on the festival became common among the people of the country and now it is a festival that the country celebrates every year.
It’s a Universal law, advantages brought lots of disadvantages. Same here, if kiting has a lot of uses besides of that many causes of abuses occurred with it. Kite fighting is contested in many countries, but particularly in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan. Hundreds of birds are grievously injured every year by glass-coated kite strings (locally called “Manjha”) that are used for flying kites. The injuries are mostly related to the wings and range from fractures, ligament and muscle separation and, worst of all, complete amputation of the wing.
Metal-coated strings have fallen on electricity lines and overhead power cables, and people have been electrocuted while trying to retrieve their kites. These strings have also caused short-circuits and power outages. And kite strings aren’t the only reason kite flying can be dangerous.
Environmentalists have been warning for decades that the Manja used as a thread for the kites are very dangerous for the flying creatures and most harmful for human too.
The danger is often very great to you and other people. It includes accidents, cuts, shoulder and neck sprain, eye damage, skin tans and the list is endless. Most of the injuries sustained during kite flying include falls, cuts, electrocution or head and neck injuries.
A fresh graduate from university, who had joined his maiden job just three days before his death, was the latest victim of the throttle slitting incidents, which have already claimed hundreds of lives and injured as many over the past few decades. The deaths and injuries are caused by the use of sharp glass-coated strings used specifically for kite-flying.
Energy kites use a wing tethered to a ground station to efficiently harness energy from the wind. As the kite flies autonomously in loops, rotors on the wing spin as the wind moves through them, generating electricity that is sent down the tether to the grid.
The kite is super lightweight as it’s made of carbon fibre. Each kite system will be capable of generating around 500 kilowatts of energy, enough to supply electricity to around 430 homes. Each kite can produce enough electricity to power approximately 50 to 70 homes. But according to Minesto chief executive, Martin Edlund, larger-scale beasts will enter the world wind in 2022, he says :
“The new kites will have a 12-metre wingspan, and can each generate 1.2 megawatts of power [a megawatt is 1,000 kilowatts]”
That means a kite measuring just 65 square feet creates a pulling power measured at 10 kilowatts or enough to move more than one ton. A collection of kites with just under 1,000 square feet should be able to produce the same amount of electricity as 20 one-megawatt wind turbines.
Now, the discussion proved that the kite invention hadn’t been for fun. Its main purposes were purely scientific, informative, energetic and military bases. World’s 90% population just know that kites are used just for fun, only 10% understand it’s benefits and these persons are the Scientists who are busy to produce energy through kites fir future. Hopefully, after reading this article, most people who were included in 90% will be change their mindset related to kiting.
Past clarified Kite uses, modern age renovated utilizes into mishandlings, now, future could be brilliant and its in our hands that how it could be possible. Disadvantages could be monitored in some better ways but if we will avoid the purposes and advantages of kites, our next generations will never introduce the “KITE ENERGY” then obviously they will be always live in the dark side.
Through this discussion we can get silent but moral lessons from this non living thing. We need others to help us, lift us, keep us flying and keep our ties strong, just like a kite. Kites teach us that if we care for others, they will care for us. If we attempt to break others, we might just end up broken ourselves. It is never too late to lift ourselves up and go for gold again.
