
A Water-Powered Jetpack - yaj
http://www.popsci.com/diy/article/2009-07/water-powered-jetpack
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theklub
I'll be the first to say that is awesome and I hope its not vaporware.

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jseifer
This does look like a ton of fun, though the "hose" attachment didn't seem to
go too far. It's also not cheap. But kudos to the developer of the thing! It's
an incredibly original invention and application. Plus, since it runs in the
water and is attached to something you can't go too high and there's a smaller
risk of injury.

Also, I chuckled at the pun of calling this "vaporware" :)

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pshc
"incredibly original"

Well, we can't be sure about that: ;)

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Mario_Sunshine>

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mcav
Water- _propelled_ , not really water- _powered_.

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jpwagner
wait, what does that say about your definition of "high-powered"?

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paulgb
I'm not a physicist, but this paragraph struck me as incorrect (or at least
misleading):

 _Li, however, figured that if he attached a hose to his pack, and put the
engine and water pump in a separate vessel that dragged behind him, he could
seriously reduce his weight, and therefore the amount of thrust needed to stay
aloft._

If the engine and pump were part of the jet pack, even if the engine and water
pump were weightless, wouldn't it be impossible to get enough thrust to
provide lift? The propellant is being thrown back in the direction it came, so
doesn't the momentum cancel out?

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gchpaco
There's a great deal of extra momentum being added through the engine and
water pump that you're not accounting for.

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devin
That thing would rip your feet off if you got in its way.

