For a long time, people thought baseball aerodynamics were simply a competition between gravity and the Magnus effect caused when a ball is spinning. But the seams of a baseball Keep reading
Tag: flow separation
Tokyo 2020: Visualizing the Magnus Effect in Golf
Golf returned to the Olympics in 2016 in Rio and is back for the Tokyo edition. Golf balls — with their turbulence-promoting dimples — are a perennial favorite for aerodynamics Keep reading
Tokyo 2020: Volleyball Aerodynamics
Like footballs and baseballs, the trajectory of a volleyball is strongly influenced by aerodynamics. When spinning, the ball experiences a difference in pressure on either side, which causes it to swerve, per the Magnus Keep reading
Vortex Rings on V-Shaped Walls
Vortex ring impacts are eternally fascinating. Here, researchers explore what happens when a vortex ring encounters a V-shaped wall. Because the outer portions of the vortex ring hit the wall Keep reading
Bristling Sharkskin Fights Separation
The speedy shortfin mako shark has a secret weapon to fight drag: bristling denticles that line its fins and tail. Denticles are tiny, anvil-shaped enamel scales on the mako’s skin. Keep reading
Using Flow Separation to Fly
Fixed-wing flight typically favors the efficiency of long skinny wings, which is why so many aircraft have them. But for smaller flyers, like micro air vehicles (MAVs), short and stubby Keep reading
Flow on Commercial Wings
Even in an era of supercomputers, there is a place for quick and dirty methods of flow visualization. Here we see a model of a swept wing like those seen on Keep reading
Why Do Backwards Wings Exist?
Over the years, there have been many odd airplane designs, but one you probably haven’t seen much is the forward-swept wing. While most early aircraft featured straight wings, rear-swept wings are Keep reading
Stall with Pitching Foils
For a fixed-wing aircraft, stall – the point where airflow around the wing separates and lift is lost – is an enemy. It’s the precursor to a stomach-turning freefall for Keep reading
PyeongChang 2018: Speedskating
Four years ago in Sochi, Under Armour’s suits for the U.S. speedskating team took a lot of flak after the team failed to medal. The company defended the physics and Keep reading