Why No One Can Explain Airplanes
49Today's video is a very brief look at the incredibly complex phenomena that is Lift. In short, it's complicated and unpredictable but I hope you enjoy the video anyway.
There are a few concepts I didn't cover in the video that I will mention here:
*Angle of attack:* Tilting the airfoil has a massive effect on the amount of lift, much more than the shape on its own.
*Drag:* Lift always comes with drag, the best airfoils maximize the ratio of lift to drag rather than simply maximizing raw lift.
*Flow separation and Stalling:* With steep angles of attack, or sharp changes in geometry (like the triangle airfoil) flow can separate from the airfoil which greatly reduces the lift and increases the drag.
*Cut Wind Tunnel Tests:* I had two more wind tunnel tests that weren't included in the final video. The first was a flat airfoil that was supposed to act as a control. Unfortunately, because of the updraft seen in the triangle test, the flat plate experienced some lift. This also caused issues with another airfoil shape which was a rectangle with a semi-circle cut out of it. This was going to act as a counter to the longer path explanation because it is supposed to experience negative lift, but the updraft caused it to move up instead. Essentially, the wind tunnel is terrible and is only for demonstration, not actually proving anything.
Intro Music: Himalayan Atmosphere
by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100204
Artist: http://incompetech.com/
(0:00) - Introduction
(0:15) - Basic Explanations
(1:01) - Terminology
(1:26) - The Explanation is Wrong
(2:33) - Nozzle Explanation
(3:03) - Wind Tunnel Demos
(4:17) - Limitations of Explanations
(4:49) - Outro
Other Videos By Con Hathy
| 2021-03-27 | Are You Smarter Than A Rocket Scientist? |
| 2021-03-27 | 50% of Engineers got it Wrong #shorts |
| 2021-02-23 | What is the Area Rule ACTUALLY? |
| 2021-01-22 | Gravity Doesn't Make Sense |
| 2020-09-21 | Excessive Planning In Kerbal Space Program |
| 2020-09-14 | Why Do Rockets Have Bells? |
| 2020-09-03 | Perfecting the Air Cannon | Project Woodwind |
| 2019-12-31 | Making a Battle Axe (Very Bad) |
| 2019-08-05 | This was a VERY Bad Idea! |
| 2019-06-14 | Understanding Specific Impulse | Rocket Science 101 |
| 2019-06-01 | Why No One Can Explain Airplanes |
| 2019-05-16 | Wind Tunnel Teaser |
| 2019-03-03 | The Planes That Can Fly Themselves: Passive Stability |
| 2019-02-15 | Stop Getting it Wrong |
| 2018-12-21 | Christmas Recap (2018) |
| 2018-12-19 | Is NASA a Waste of Money? |
| 2018-11-18 | The Strange World of Gravity Made Simple |
| 2018-08-17 | The Most Common Mistake In Rockets |
| 2018-08-11 | The Real Scale of Earth |
| 2018-07-06 | Breaking The Bridge: Crash Course Statics E3 (FINALE) |
| 2018-06-07 | Making A POLEAXE! (well... a big war hammer) |