Soar Through the Skies!

#30 Week 7

Author

Sigrun Sørumgård
February 11, 2025

Test your knowledge about the wonders of aviation!

  1. What is the fastest commercial airplane ever built?

  2. Which British fighter plane became famous during the Battle of Britain?

  3. What is the name of the largest passenger airplane in the world?

  4. What is the name of the first airplane to successfully fly?

  5. Which warplane dropped the first atomic bomb?

  6. Which aircraft was used for Charles Lindbergh’s first solo nonstop transatlantic flight?

  7. Which aircraft can perform vertical takeoffs and landings?

  8. What was the name of the Air Force of Nazi Germany?

  9. What plane was shot down over Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis?

  10. Which aircraft, that has been in service, holds the fastest air speed record?

The Wonder Wall

  • Although he lived centuries before the age of flight, Leonardo da Vinci designed many flying machines. His most famous machine was the Ornithopter which was the basis of the modern-day helicopter.

  • In 1932 Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic on her own.

  • The world's busiest airport is Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, which has been the world's busiest airport every year since 1998 with the exception of 2020, when its passenger traffic dipped for a year due to travel restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Atlanta regained the top position in 2021, and has held it since. Alternatively, London has the world's busiest city airport system by passenger count.

Yesterday´s Questions & Answers

  1. Which whale is known for its unique songs that can travel long distances underwater?

    Humpback whales are famous for their long, complex songs.

  2. Whales are divided into the suborders, what are these two groups called?

    The whales are divided into the suborders toothed whales (Odontoceti) and baleen whales (Mysticeti).

  3. Which whale has a long, spiral tusk that resembles a unicorn’s horn?

    Often dubbed the unicorns of the sea, narwhals are strange and beautiful creatures with long tusks protruding from their heads.

  4. Which dolphin, is often believed is a name, maybe because one of its names and size?

    Orcas are the largest species in the dolphin family. Because of their size and because they are also called 'killer whales', they're sometimes called whales. All dolphin families, including porpoises, are also classified as whales.

  5. Which whale species has the largest brain of any animal?

    Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) have the largest known brain mass of any extant animal, averaging 7.8 kg in mature males.

  6. What type of whale has the largest mouth of any animal?

    The bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus), also called the Greenland right whale, Arctic whale, and polar whale has the largest mouth of any animal representing almost one-third of the length of the body, the longest baleen plates with a maximum length of 4 m (13 ft), and may be the longest-lived mammals, with the ability to reach an age of more than 200 years.

  7. What kind of whale was Moby Dick from Herman Melville's novel of the same name?

    Moby-Dick; or, The Whale is an 1851 epic novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is centered on the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship Pequod, for vengeance against Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale that bit off his leg on the ship's previous voyage.

  8. Which whale is the second largest whale (and animal) on Earth, and is also counted as one of the fastest swimmers among whales?

    The fin whale is a species of baleen whale in the fin whale family. It is the second largest conifer species on the planet, only the blue whale, its close relative in the fin whale family, is larger.

  9. Around how much does a newborn blue whale weigh at birth?

    Already as newborn calves, blue whales are ranked as one of the largest animals on earth: around seven meters long and three tonnes heavy. For the first seven or eight months, it drinks nothing but mother's milk, and puts on about 90 kg every day.

  10. What type of whale was Hvaldimir?

    Hvaldimir was a male beluga whale that fishermen near Hammerfest in northern Norway noticed in April 2019 allegedly wearing a camera harness.