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Crosswind
 
 
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A crosswind is any wind that is blowing perpendicular
Perpendicular

In geometry, two line or plane , are considered perpendicular to each other if they form congruence adjacent angles angles . The term may be used as a noun or adjective....
 to a line of travel, or perpendicular to a direction. In aviation
Aviation

File:Norwegian military Bell 412SP helicopters.jpgAviation refers to activities involving man-made flying devices , including the people, organizations, and regulatory bodies involved with them....
, a crosswind is the component of wind that is blowing across the runway
Runway

A runway is a strip of land on an airport, on which aircraft can Takeoff and landing. Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface ....
 making a landing
Landing

Landing is the last part of a flight, where a flying animal, aircraft, or spacecraft returns to the ground. When the flying object returns to water, the process is called alighting, although it is commonly called "landing" and "touchdown" as well....
 more difficult than if the wind were blowing straight down the runway. If a crosswind is strong enough it may exceed an aircraft's crosswind limit and an attempt to land under such conditions could cause structural damage to the aircraft's undercarriage
Undercarriage

In aviation, the undercarriage or landing gear is the structure that supports an aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxiing....
.

Crosswind is sometimes abbreviated X/WIND.

Crosswinds can also occur when traveling on roads, especially on large bridges and highway
Highway

A highway is a main road intended for travel by the public between important destinations, such as city and towns. Highway designs vary widely and can range from a two-lane road without margins to a multi-lane, grade separated freeway....
s, which can be dangerous for motorists because of possible lift force created as well as causing the vehicle to cahnge direction of travel.






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Encyclopedia


A crosswind is any wind that is blowing perpendicular
Perpendicular

In geometry, two line or plane , are considered perpendicular to each other if they form congruence adjacent angles angles . The term may be used as a noun or adjective....
 to a line of travel, or perpendicular to a direction. In aviation
Aviation

File:Norwegian military Bell 412SP helicopters.jpgAviation refers to activities involving man-made flying devices , including the people, organizations, and regulatory bodies involved with them....
, a crosswind is the component of wind that is blowing across the runway
Runway

A runway is a strip of land on an airport, on which aircraft can Takeoff and landing. Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface ....
 making a landing
Landing

Landing is the last part of a flight, where a flying animal, aircraft, or spacecraft returns to the ground. When the flying object returns to water, the process is called alighting, although it is commonly called "landing" and "touchdown" as well....
 more difficult than if the wind were blowing straight down the runway. If a crosswind is strong enough it may exceed an aircraft's crosswind limit and an attempt to land under such conditions could cause structural damage to the aircraft's undercarriage
Undercarriage

In aviation, the undercarriage or landing gear is the structure that supports an aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxiing....
.

Crosswind is sometimes abbreviated X/WIND.

Crosswinds can also occur when traveling on roads, especially on large bridges and highway
Highway

A highway is a main road intended for travel by the public between important destinations, such as city and towns. Highway designs vary widely and can range from a two-lane road without margins to a multi-lane, grade separated freeway....
s, which can be dangerous for motorists because of possible lift force created as well as causing the vehicle to cahnge direction of travel. The safest way for motorists to deal with crosswinds is by reducing their speed to reduce the effect of the lift force and to steer into the direction of the crosswind.

When winds are neither perpendicular nor parallel to the line of travel, the wind is said to have a crosswind component; that is it can be separated into two components, a crosswind component and a headwind or tailwind component. A vehicle behaves as though it is directly experiencing a crosswind in the magnitude of the crosswind component only.

The crosswind component is computed by multiplying the wind speed by the sine
Siné

Maurice Sinet, known as Sin? is a France cartoonist.As a young man he studied drawing and graphic arts, earning his life as a cabaret singer....
 of the angle between the wind and the direction of travel. For example, a 10-knot
Knot (speed)

The knot is a unit of speed equal to one nautical mile per hour. Its kn abbreviation is preferred by American and Canadian maritime authorities, and by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; however, the kt and kts abbreviations also are used....
 wind coming at 45 degrees from either side will have a crosswind component of 10 kts•sin(45°) or approximately 7.07 knots. The headwind component is computed in the same manner, using cosine instead of sine. To determine the crosswind component in real world flight aviators frequently refer to a chart on which the wind speed and angle are plotted and the crosswind component is read from a reference line.

See also


  • Tailwind
    Tailwind

    A tailwind is a wind that blows in the direction of travel of an object. A tailwind increases the object's speed and reduces the time required to reach its destination....
  • Headwind
    Headwind

    A headwind is a wind that blows against the direction of travel of an object. A headwind reduces the object's speed and increases the time required to reach its destination....
  • Air navigation
    Air navigation

    The principles of air navigation are the same for all aircraft, big or small. Air navigation involves successfully piloting an aircraft from place to place without getting lost, breaking the laws applying to aircraft, or endangering the safety of those on board or on the ground....
  • E6B
    E6B

    The E6B Flight Computer, also known as the Jeppesen CR-1 Student Computer, Dalton Computer, Pooleys CRP-1, 1-W, 3, 6 and 6M in the UK, or simply the "whiz wheel", is a form of circular slide rule used in aviation....


External links

  • by Bruce Miller, The Wolfram Demonstrations Project.