Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The crosswind component is computed by multiplying the wind speed by the sine of the angle between the wind and the direction of travel while the headwind component is computed in the same manner, using cosine instead of sine. For example, a 10 knot wind coming at 45 degrees from either side will have a crosswind component of 10 knots × sin(45 ...
Pilots calculate the Headwind or Tailwind Component and the Crosswind Component of local wind before takeoff. The direction of wind at a runway is measured using a windsock and the speed by an anemometer , often mounted on the same post.
The apparent wind on the sail creates a total aerodynamic force, which may be resolved into drag—the force component in the direction of the apparent wind—and lift—the force component normal (90°) to the apparent wind. Depending on the alignment of the sail with the apparent wind, lift or drag may be the predominant propulsive component.
When two of the three vectors, or four of the six components, are known, the remaining quantities can be derived. The three principal types of problems to solve are: Solve for the ground vector. This type of problem arises when true heading and true airspeed are known by reading the flight instruments and when wind direction and speed are known ...
The horizontal component of lift is directed toward the low wing, drawing the airplane sideways. This is the still-air, headwind or tailwind scenario. In case of crosswind, the wing is lowered into the wind, so that the airplane flies the original track.
Ground speed can be determined by the vector sum of the aircraft's true airspeed and the current wind speed and direction; a headwind subtracts from the ground speed, while a tailwind adds to it. Winds at other angles to the heading will have components of either headwind or tailwind as well as a crosswind component.
The apparent wind is the wind experienced by an observer in motion and is the relative velocity of the wind in relation to the observer. [citation needed]The velocity of the apparent wind is the vector sum of the velocity of the headwind (which is the velocity a moving object would experience in still air) plus the velocity of the true wind.
This new airspeed will be faster as the headwind increases, but will result in the greatest distance covered. A general rule of thumb is to add half the headwind component to the best L/D for the maximum distance. For a tailwind, the origin is shifted to the left by the speed of the tailwind, and drawing a new tangent line.