Just as with the hunting boomerang of the Aboriginal Australians, the valari also did not return to the thrower but flew straight. Modern returning boomerangs can be of various shapes or sizes. Returning boomerangs were also used to decoy birds of prey, thrown above the long grass to frighten game birds into flight and into waiting nets. The most recognisable type of the boomerang is the L-shaped returning boomerang while non-returning boomerangs and throwing sticks (or kylies) were used as weapons, returning boomerangs have been used primarily for leisure or recreation. Its surfaces are therefore symmetrical and do not have the aerofoils that give the returning boomerang its characteristic curved flight. While a throwing stick can also be shaped overall like a returning boomerang, it is designed to travel as straight as possible so that it can be aimed and thrown with great force to bring down game. A returning boomerang has two or more airfoil wings arranged so that the spinning creates unbalanced aerodynamic forces that curve its path so that it travels in an ellipse, returning to its point of origin when thrown correctly. Returning boomerangs fly and are examples of the earliest heavier-than-air human-made flight. Many people think only of the traditional Australian type, although today there are many types of more easily usable boomerangs, such as the cross-stick, the pinwheel, the tumble-stick, the Boomabird, and many other less common types.Īn important distinction should be made between returning boomerangs and non-returning boomerangs. Boomerangs come in many shapes and sizes depending on their geographic or tribal origins and intended function. Modern boomerangs used for sport may be made from plywood or plastics such as ABS, polypropylene, phenolic paper, or carbon fibre-reinforced plastics. Distribution of types of boomerangs in Australia prior to European contact, with modern state borders addedĪ boomerang is a throwing stick with certain aerodynamic properties, traditionally made of wood, but boomerang-like devices have also been made from bones.

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