Specials - CLEARANCE Exploring the Monster

Mountain Lee Waves: the Aerial Elevator

This is the fascinating account of the discovery and research into mountain lee waves and the rotors which so often accompany them. These waves are called "the aerial elevator" because they can carry an aircraft vertically with ascent and descent rates exceeding 2,500 feet per minute (often in eerie calmness) into the stratosphere without noticeable forward or sideways movement. They comprise one of the most powerful forces in nature - a force most pilots are unaware of and a force which can be as deadly as any encountered in flight.

Discovered quite by accident in 1933 in the lee of Germany's Riesengebirge Mountains, they became an object of curiosity and fear. These experiences led to the first scientific investigation of the phenomenon near Bishop, California beginning in 1950. This research was conducted primarily via sailplanes at record-setting altitudes by pilots who had only an inkling of the forces they were investigating. They encountered the tremendously destructive power of the rotors beneath these waves, capable of producing vertical and horizontal accelerations well in excess of +/-15Gs, forces more powerful than any private or commercial aircraft is designed to withstand.

Exploring the Monster is the story of the people and events, and the conclusions, of the Sierra Wave Project and the Jet Stream Project. This is a compelling read for everyone interested in aviation and anyone interested in learning more about a stunning - and common - force in nature.

"I absolutely could not put it down until I finished it...This is a book that should be in the libraries of every glider and power plane pilot." - Ernie Kamp, March 2000 Soaring magazine

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