Almost everyone can imagine a windy day on a beach or hill, with children and adults flying a kite. It is thought that the kite was first invented in China almost 3000 years ago, when bamboo was used to make a framework which could then be covered by a lightweight silk fabric, and tethered by a silk line. Designs evolved over time, and just after the end of WW1, the British company Brookite supplied the kite which carried aloft the aerial that Marconi used to make the first transatlantic wireless message.
Although a few basic children's kites are still made using cloth sails and wooden spars, the utilisation of modern materials such as rip stop nylon, foil or polyester for sails, and fibreglass or carbon fibre for the spars, has revolutionised the kite.
Some kites have two lines, and these stunt kites enable the user to perform amazing aerobatic manoeuvres, sometimes with two or more kites in tandem. Modern technology and design has meant that others have evolved into dramatic works of art which are visible from miles away. Known as power kites, which inflate with air, they have massive lift that can be used to provide enough energy to propel buggies along beaches, or surfers along the waves.
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