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A new procedure turns an alloy of nickel and titanium into a material as strong as steel but 20 times stretchier – and one application could be building planes with shape-shifting wings

By Karmela Padavic-Callaghan

4 September 2024

An artist’s rendering of a futuristic aircraft with morphable wings

AFRL / NASA

An alloy of titanium and nickel is as strong as steel but stretches like a rubbery polymer. With some clever engineering, it may eventually lead to technologies like shape-shifting aircraft.

Imagine a plane with long wings that contract in midair to become shorter – and make the craft more aerodynamic – as it gains speed. To make this futuristic technology, engineers would need a material that is stretchy enough to change shape yet strong enough to withstand the elements during flight. Xiaobing Ren at the National Institute for…

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