A parachute is a device made of fabric or other resistant material that reduces the speed reached by a body when falling from a great height . It is a device used by those who, as a hobby or for another reason, jump from a plane, helicopter or other aircraft .
Parachutes, when opened, take the shape of a large umbrella or parasol . By passing through the air, they generate resistance that minimizes the user's fall speed, allowing them to reach the surface safely and without suffering significant impacts.
Parachutes are usually stored in a container. To use it, the person must put on a harness that has an opening device . When the individual needs to open the parachute, he or she appeals to this mechanism that releases the bell (which is attached to the harness by ropes). The parachute also has controls to operate it and decide, if possible, the place where it will make contact with the ground.
It is important to highlight that the parachute is an essential safety element in any aircraft. In case of emergency , the pilot and passengers have to resort to parachutes to avoid suffering the consequences of an impact at full speed against the ground. The models that students use usually include mechanisms to enhance their security.
The process of opening a parachute was meticulously designed and respects a series of complementary steps that take place in an orderly sequence, from the moment the person decides to use it until it reaches its final state. Although there is more than one system available on the market, each with certain functional differences according to the characteristics of its manufacturing, broadly speaking we can summarize it as activation , opening and inflation .
The pilot system is used to initiate the activation of the parachute and the opening of the canopy , and is used by the most experienced in the discipline of skydiving. It is a small round piece of fabric that is attached to a ball whose diameter is comparable to that of a golf ball, which is attached to a ribbon.
While the parachute is inactive, the pilot remains folded and stored in a part of the harness. To begin opening, the person must pull the ball, thus making the parachute come into contact with the air for the first time.
The parachute is attached to the pilot by an extensive zip tie that is kept in the external bag with the fabric. On the other side of the bag is a metal pin called a pin and it closes the lower flaps of the harness, in addition to keeping the bag inside the device. By pulling the pilot, the user gets the air to inflate it and the force pulls the pin, opens the flaps and lets out the bag where the bell is housed.
The parachute is made by combining a series of cells , inflatable fabric tubes, that connect to both sides of the bell. The cells are designed to give the product an aerodynamic profile, so that when inflated it takes the shape of a wing and can stay in flight. Its front face has an opening that allows air to penetrate, while its back face is closed.
Skydiving is the recreational practice of jumping with a parachute. He who jumps with a parachute, meanwhile, is called a parachutist .
It should be noted that there are also special parachutes used as deceleration equipment. Certain sports cars , rockets and special ships have these parachutes to shorten the braking distance.