What is Black Box?

What is Black Box?

Black boxes are normally referred to by aviation experts as electronic flight data recorders. Their role is to keep detailed track of on-flight information, recording all flight data such as altitude, position and speed as well as all pilot conversations. Essentially, a black box flight recorder is heavily protected recording device, similar to a hard disk or a memory card. The black box records all relevant flight data, in addition to conversations in the cockpit. Previously, this data had to be recorded on two different devices.

To protect the stack of memory boards that store information, black boxes are wrapped in a thin layer of aluminum and a 1-inch layer of high-temperature insulation, and then encased in a corrosion-resistant stainless steel or titanium shell. The black box is actually a cylinder mounted on two large pieces of metal and looks more like an air compressor than a tape recorder. The term “box” refers to when the recordings were made on metallic tapes, which have been replaced by digital memory boards. Hence, black boxes are orange

The crucial data preserved in the so-called black boxes of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 should survive for two years or longer, even if they are submerged in the corrosive salt water of the Indian Ocean. It is known as black box because it is often charred black after a crash, it may be because the very first boxes were painted black to prevent reflection or because black box is a general name in science for devices with in and output of data with complex internal workings.