Called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet that can be used to fullfil this desire and transport persons who are on it instantaneously or quickly to their destination. In addition to recalling the experience of flight and flying, flying carpet, by depicting the larger geographical area, also helps to reinforce a sense of belonging and/or connection for the traveler.

Flying magic carpets have appeared in literature from ancient times through the present day. The literary traditions of almost all cultures feature magical carpets whereas the popularity of One Thousand and One Nights brought magic carpets to the attention of Western audiences. The magic carpet of Tangu, also called "Prince Housain's carpet" was a seemingly worthless carpet from Tangu in Persia that acted as a magic carpet. It was featured in tales from One Thousand and One Nights.

King Solomon's (Isreal) carpet has also a special place in stories which was reportedly made of green silk, on which Solomon's throne was placed when traveling. A gift from the Queen of Sheba (presently Ethiopia), it was large enough for his entourage to stand upon, people on his right, spirits to his left. The wind followed Solomon's commands, and ensured the carpet and its contents would go to the proper destination. The carpet was shielded from the sun by a canopy of birds.

In Russian folk tales, Baba Yaga can supply "Ivan the Fool" with a flying carpet or some other magical gifts (e.g., a ball that rolls in front of the hero showing him the way or a towel that can turn into a bridge). Such gifts help the hero to find his way "beyond thrice-nine lands, in the thrice-ten kingdom". Similarly, in Mark Twain's "Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven", magic wishing-carpets are used to instantaneously travel throughout Heaven.

Magic carpets have also been featured in modern literature, movies, and video games, and not always in a classic context. Recently, an Indian Institute of Technology-Chennai (IIT) alumnus has come up with instructions on how to make a flying carpet a reality. Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan, who is presently associated with Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts (USA), says that his team's instructions are not based on fantasies. Along with his colleagues at the university, Mahadevan studied the aerodynamics of a flexible, rippling sheet moving through a fluid. Mahadevan says that to stay afloat in air, a sheet measuring about 10 cm long and 0.1 mm thick would need to vibrate at about 10Hz with amplitude of about 0.25mm. Mahadevan admits that making a heavier carpet 'fly' is not forbidden by the laws of physics, but clarifies that the engine driving the necessary vibrations would need to be very powerful for the purpose. The researcher says what is required for making a magic carpet is to create uplift by making ripples that push against fluids like air or water. Such rippling movements create a high pressure in the gap between a horizontal sheet and the floor, if they are close to the sheet. As waves propagate along a flexible foil, they generate a fluid flow that leads to a pressure that lifts the foil, roughly balancing its weight.

Further, according to researcher, the ripples could not only lift the foil but drive it forward also, a trait required by any respectable magic carpet. If the waves propagate from one edge, this causes the foil to tilt ever so slightly and then move in one direction towards the edge that is slightly higher. Fluid is then squeezed from this end to the other, causing the sheet to progress like a submarine ray. Researcher further said that for traveling at speed, the carpet would have to undulate in big ripples, comparable to the size of the carpet which would make the ride very bumpy. For a smooth ride, generation of a lot of small ripples will serve the purpose but the flying will be slower.

Researcher, however, has made it clear that at present level of research no flying carpet will be able to ferry people around but based on their study, it may be concluded that making a carpet that would stay aloft in air may be possible in near future. In air, it should be possible to make moving sheets - a kind of micro hovercraft - with very light materials, or with very powerful engines. The scientific and technological developments leading towards the realization of flying carpet are encouraging. No doubt research is always a hit and trial of possibilities. But at the start such inventions are given lots of coverage and much is expected from them though they are at very initial stages from reality and most of them die a sudden death before any final outcome. Let us hope that flying carpet will no more remain a fantasy and will be available to common man to fulfill his dream of instantaneous flying.

Dr SS Verma