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Wing

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	Wing
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	Topics Wing Topic Home A wing is a surface used to produce liftLift (force) Lift consists of the sum of all the fluid dynamic forces on a body perpendicular to the direction of the external flow appro... for flightFlight Flight is the process by which a heavier-than-air animal or object achieves sustained movement either through the air by aer... through the airEarth's atmosphere Earth's atmosphere is a layer of gases surrounding the planet Earth and retained by the Earth's gravity.... or another gaseous medium. The wing shape is usually an airfoilAirfoil An airfoil is the shape of a wing or blade as seen in cross-section.... . The word originally referred only to the foremost limbsLimb (anatomy) Overview A limb is a jointed, or prehensile , appendage of the human or animal body.... of birdBird Birds are bipedal, warm-blooded, oviparous vertebrate animals characterized primarily by feathers, forelimbs modified as win... s, but has been extended to include the wings of insectInsect Insects are invertebrates that are taxonomically referred to as the class Insecta.... s, batBat Bats are mammals in the order Chiroptera.... s, pterosaurPterosaur Pterosaurs were flying reptiles of the clade Pterosauria.... s, and aircraftAircraft An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight.... . A wing's aerodynamic quality is expressed as a Lift-to-drag ratioLift-to-drag ratio In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio, or L/D ratio, is the amount of lift generated by a wing, compared to the drag... . The lift generated by a wing at a given speed and angle of attackFacts About Angle of attack Angle of attack is a term used in aerodynamics to describe the angle between the airfoil's chord line and the direction of a... can be 1-2 orders of magnitudeOrder of magnitude Overview An order of magnitude is the class of scale or magnitude of any amount, where each class contains values of a fixed ratio to... greater than the dragDrag (physics) In fluid dynamics, drag is the force that resists the movement of a solid object through a fluid.... . This means that a significantly smaller thrustThrust Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newton's Second and Third Laws.... force can be applied to propel the wing through the air in order to obtain a specified lift. Design features Airplane wings may feature some of the following: A rounded leading edgeLeading edge The leading edge is a line connecting the forward-most points of a wing's profile.... cross-section A sharp trailing edgeTrailing edge Summary The trailing edge of a wing is the rear edge of the wing, where the airflow separated by the leading edge rejoins after pass... cross-section Leading-edge devices such as slatsSlats Slats are small aerodynamic surfaces on the leading edge of the wings of fixed-wing aircraft which, when deployed, allow the... , slotsLeading edge slot Overview Leading edge slots are fixed aerodynamic devices used on airplanes.... , or extensionLeading edge extension Leading edge extensions or LEX are fillets added to the front of a modern fighter aircraft's wings in order to provide... s Trailing-edge devices such as flapFlap (aircraft) Flaps are hinged surfaces on the trailing or leading edge of the wings of a fixed-wing aircraft which, when deployed, increa... s AileronAileron Ailerons are hinged control surfaces attached to the trailing edge of the wing of a fixed-wing aircraft.... s (usually near the wingtips) to provide roll control SpoilerSpoiler (aeronautics) In aeronautics a spoiler is a device intended to reduce lift in an aircraft.... s on the upper surface to disrupt lift and additional roll control Vortex generatorVortex generator A vortex generator is an aerodynamic surface, consisting of a small vane that creates a vortex.... s to help prevent flow separation in transonic flow Wing fenceWing fence [Image:Su-20 RB4.jpg\|thumb\|250px\|right\|A Polish Sukhoi Su-20, with large wing fences on inner wings.]]... s to keep flow attached to the wing by stopping boundary layer separation from spreading DihedralDihedral Dihedral is the upward angle of an aircraft's wings from root to tip, as viewed from directly in front of or behind the airc... , or a positive wing angle to the horizontal. This gives inherent stability in roll. Anhedral, or a negative wing angle to the horizontal, has a destabilising effect Folding wingFolding wing A folding wing is a design feature of aircraft in order to save space, and is typical of naval aircraft that operate from th... s allow more aircraft to be carried in the confined space of the hangarHangar A hangar is a metal, wooden, or concrete structure designed to hold one or many aircraft in protective storage.... of an aircraft carrierAircraft carrier Additive synthesis is a technique of audio synthesis which creates musical timbre.... . Science of wings The science of wings is one of the principal applications of the science of aerodynamicsAerodynamics Aerodynamics is a branch of fluid dynamics concerned with the study of forces and gas flows.... . In order for a wing to produce lift it has to be at a positive angle to the airflow. In that case a low pressurePressure Pressure is the force per unit area applied on a surface in a direction perpendicular to that surface.... region is generated on the upper surface of the wing which draws the air above the wing downwards towards what would otherwise be a void after the wing had passed. On the underside of the wing a high pressure region forms accelerating the air there downwards out of the path of the oncoming wing. The pressure difference between these two regions produces an upwards force on the wing, called lift. The pressure differences, the acceleration of the air and the lift on the wing are intrinsically one mechanism. It is therefore possible to derive the value of one by calculating another. For example lift can be calculated by reference to the pressure differences or by calculating the energy used to accelerate the air. Both approaches will result in the same answer if done correctly. Debates over which mathematical approach is the more convenient can be wrongly perceived as differences of opinion about the principles of flight and often create unnecessary confusion in the mind of the layman. For a more detailed coverage see lift (force)Lift (force) Lift consists of the sum of all the fluid dynamic forces on a body perpendicular to the direction of the external flow appro... . A common misconception is that it is the shape of the wing that is essential to generate lift by having a longer path on the top rather than the underside. This is not the case, thin flat wings can produce lift efficiently and aircraft with cambered wings can fly inverted as long as the nose of the aircraft is pointed high enough so as to present the wing at a positive angle of attack to the airflow. The common aerofoil shape of wings is due to a large number of factors many of them not at all related to aerodynamic issues, for example wings need strength and thus need to be thick enough to contain structural members. They also need room to contain items such as fuel, control mechanisms and retracted undercarriage. The primary aerodynamic input to the wing’s cross sectional shape is the need to keep the air flowing smoothly over the entire surface for the most efficient operation. In particular, there is a requirement to prevent the low-pressure gradient that accelerates the air down the back of the wing becoming too great and effectively “sucking” the air off the surface of the wing. If this happens the wing surface from that point backwards becomes substantially ineffective. The shape chosen by the designer is a compromise dependent upon the intended operational ranges of airspeed, angles of attack and wing loadings. Usually aircraft wings have devices, such as flapFlap (aircraft) Flaps are hinged surfaces on the trailing or leading edge of the wings of a fixed-wing aircraft which, when deployed, increa... s, which allow the pilot to modify shape and surface area of the wing to be able to change its operating characteristics in flight. In 1948 Francis RogalloFrancis Rogallo In 1948 Francis Melwin Rogallo and Gertrude Rogallo filed a patent for a flexible winged kite.... invented the fully limp flexible wing which ushered new possibilities for aircraft. Near in time Domina JalbertDomina Jalbert Domina Jalbert made what was perhaps the most notable invention in wing design of the last century.... invented flexible un-sparred ram-air airfoiled thick wings. These two new branches of wings have been since extensively studied and applied in new branches of aircraft, especially altering the personal recreational aviation landscape. The science of wings applies in other areas beyond conventional fixed-wing aircraftFixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air craft where movement of the wings in relation to the aircraft is not used to ge... , including: Hang gliders which use wings from fully-flexible wings, flexible wings (framed sail wings), to rigid wings. KitesKite types Various types of kites exist, ranging from materials, shape, usage, skill required to operate, and so on.... which use a vast variety of wings. Aeromodelling employ wings. HelicopterHelicopter A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors, Helicopters are classified as ... s which use a rotating wing with a variable pitch or angle to provide a directional force The space shuttleSpace Shuttle Overview NASA's Space Shuttle, officially called Space Transportation System , is the United States government's current manned... which uses its wings only for lift during its descent Some racing carsRacing Cars Racing Cars is a Welsh pop band, formed in the Rhondda Valley, South Wales in 1973. ... , especially Formula One carFormula One car Modern Formula One cars are single-seat, open cockpit, open wheel race cars that have substantial wings at front and rear, a... s, which use upside-down wings to give cars greater adhesion at high speeds over 100mph. SailingSailing Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or sailboat, across a body of water.... boats which use sails as vertical wings with variable fullness and direction to move across water. Structures with the same purpose as wings, but designed to operate in liquid media, are generally called finFin Overview A fin is a surface used to produce lift and thrust or to steer while traveling in water, air, or other fluid media.... s or hydroplanesHydroplaning Hydroplaning and hydroplane have several meanings:... , with hydrodynamicsHydrodynamics Hydrodynamics is fluid dynamics applied to liquids, such as water, alcohol, oil, and blood.... as the governing science. Applications arise in craft such as hydrofoilHydrofoil A hydrofoil is a boat with wing-like foils mounted on struts below the hull.... s and submarineSubmarine A submarine is a specialized watercraft that can operate underwater.... s. SailingSailing Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or sailboat, across a body of water.... boats use both fins and wings. See also FlightFlight Flight is the process by which a heavier-than-air animal or object achieves sustained movement either through the air by aer... Bird flightBird flight Flight is the mode of locomotion used by most of the worlds bird species.... Flight featherFlight feather Flight feathers are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired feathers on the wings or tail of a bird... PlanformPlanform A planform or plan view is a vertical orthographic projection of an object on a horizontal plane, like a map.... Insect flightInsect flight Over the past several million years, flying insects have evolved some remarkable flight characteristics and abilities, superior in... List of soaring birdsList of soaring birds This is a list of types of soaring birds, which are birds that can maintain flight without wing flapping, using rising air current... Flying and gliding animalsFlying and gliding animals A number of animals have evolved aerial locomotion, either by powered flight or by gliding.... External links - Audio segment on NPR's Talk of the Nation Science Friday Wings for all speeds in animals