/r/aerodynamics

Photograph via snooOG

Aerodynamics, from Greek ἀήρ aero (air) + δυναμική (dynamics), is the branch of fluid mechanics which studies the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object. It is a core part of science and engineering, from cars, aircraft and engines, to buildings and bridges, to atmospheric science, sports science and even throughout biology.

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  1. Text posts must contain a question about aerodynamics in the title — be specific.
    Exceptions will only be case-by-case, e.g. if you intend to share an interesting write-up, or had an interesting TIL. Phrase your query as a clear question; Avoid short ambiguous statements such as "How to [X]". We will not accept titles containing the words "help please" or "aero question" or similar.

  2. Posts must be relevant.
    We like questions, news, published research, course content, educational resources, memes or videos about Aerodynamics.

  3. We wont help you cheat on your homework.
    We welcome 'wordy homework questions' and discussion on relevant topics. If you have input values to a problem and need help getting to the output values, give us some context! Let us know what you've already tried, what you're struggling with, and be prepared to engage with follow-up discussion. Be prepared to do the final calculations yourself. We wont just do all your homework for you from scratch and give you the answer. In other words, no copy+paste lazy cheaters.


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    Ensure that you have the knowledge required to answer the question at hand. We are not strict on this, but will absolutely not accept assertions of pseudo-science or incoherent / uninformed rambling. Answers should strive to contain an explanation using the logic of science, engineering or mathematics. When making assertions, we encourage you to post links to supporting evidence, or use valid reasoning.

  3. Be substantive.
    Top-level comments should make at least some effort. Feel free to expand on your answer with more than one or two words.


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/r/aerodynamics

11,048 Subscribers

1

Reduce leading edge tip vortex

Hi,

I am working on Formula Student aerodynamics for a rear wing. How can I modify the endplate to reduce this tip vortex without significantly decreasing the downforce?

Thanks

4 Comments
2025/01/16
19:30 UTC

2

Pressure difference on an airfoil

On this paper (you don't need to open it) they say that that DeltaP is the difference in upper and lower surface pressures on an airfoil with the sign convention that DeltaP>0 gives positive lift.

They are talking about a propeller airfoil.

My query is: considering that on the upper surface of an airfoil we typically have a lower pressure than the lower surface (this is what generates lift), how can Delta P > 0 be generating lift?

5 Comments
2025/01/16
09:40 UTC

2

Active aero motor and mechanism

Hello, im trying to create a active aero wing on my car. This is not a full blown race car going 200mph :) it will mostly go at higway speeds or up to 100-120mph if I'm doing a pull. The car had a active aero wing stock. But im trying to build it into the wing that did not come with active aero. It will go fro 0* to about 14. I think that was what the stock one did atleast.

My biggest issue is space. I've seen people use popup headlight motors but they are too big i belive.

I have a good amount of width and height but thickness is extremely limited around 0.79 to 1.18 inches 20 to 30 mm depending if it would be low in the wing or high.

The wing blade will be mounted at 2 points front and rear of blade, it will pivot around front part and lift up on the rear mounting point.

Any ideas? Been looking at servos, slim steppermotors or small wormgearmotors. But I have no clue when it comes to forces it would need and such.

Stock wireing and picutre: https://www.3si.org/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,onerror=redirect,width=1920,height=1920,fit=scale-down/https://www.3si.org/attachments/1654644696364-png.302959/

5 Comments
2025/01/15
21:31 UTC

6

Would it be possible to have a flyable plane that has the Bell 47 exposed tail strucure?

https://preview.redd.it/vqahecise7de1.png?width=1210&format=png&auto=webp&s=e815a91bbe4a0110bb3640e585b19fb6ef9ed3bf

Just a theoretical question I had. I really like the exposed crane like structure the Bell 47 has in the tail, and I was wondering if a plane could fly with something like that, joining the main body to the back fins. Obviously it is not the most efficient build for a plane, but as far as I can tell, it would not cause enough drag to make it unflyable right?

5 Comments
2025/01/15
18:56 UTC

45

Is There a Point Where too Much Air can go to the Diffuser

15 Comments
2025/01/15
07:52 UTC

6

Aerodynamics of different types of wings in comparison with the oblique wing design.

I'm currently doing a project where I have to choose subjects to write in. I choose physics and historie. The topics I choose was "the physics of different wings and why the oblique wing is different"

the history is focussed on how there generally has been pessimistic views on the challenges that engineers have faced. The first being the actual first flight by the wright brothers and how the new york times talked shit, the second one is penetrating the sound barrier where im looking for a source talking shit and the last one is about how we today don't want to implement the oblique wing even though its very efficient

Currently I'm looking for sources in the history aspect. If anyone knows a reliable source where someone/something talks (shit) about the next leap forward that would be very appreciated.

I'm also looking for books/websites/videos that teaches me the math and physics behind aerodynamics in genereal and the specifik cases I'm researching.

(im so well versed in aerodynamics yet so any help would be appreciated🙏)

2 Comments
2025/01/14
10:34 UTC

37

Which Diffuser Profile Would Create More Downforce?

15 Comments
2025/01/12
07:43 UTC

3

Trouble with rear wheel.

Hello. I'm a member of a FSAE Team, and we are trying to optimise our aero package before starting the aero map. We are facing a problem with the rear tyre, since it's generating tons of lift... We don't know if we are introducing wrong values to Ansys or if we aren't correctly conductig the airflow. Here I attach some pictures.

Iso-Surface: Pressure

Velocity Vectors [0, 60m/s]

Downforce

3 Comments
2025/01/11
19:38 UTC

4

TU Delft vs ISAE-Supaero for MSc in Aerospace Engineering (Aerodynamics)?

6 Comments
2025/01/10
13:05 UTC

1

When a car is a bit shaky/unstable/feels light at high speed, is spoiler or wing better at keeping it stable?

I recently got a new car. Mustang. And I feel that it is somewhat light and unstable at high speeds. When I drove my old car, Mazda 3, it felt the same.

If I want to make my car feel steadier and more pressed to the ground at high speeds, should I get a spoiler or a wing?

9 Comments
2025/01/10
02:49 UTC

1

Best materials and shape for co2 dragster?

I need help with my TSA c02 drag car. I need to know how my design can be improved or altered, I am currently planning on making a flat piece of wood with a smooth, ball like surface for the cartridge housing, the car races on a track and is propelled by a c02 cartridge and is held on the track by a wire running through two metal loops mounted on the bottom of the car, I’m doing this just as an activity and to better my understanding of the topic, i can’t figure out how in the world to maximize my success, I am trying to minimize drag, friction from the wheels and axels, and I know I probably (correct me if I’m wrong) need the skinniest tire possible to reduce friction, but the only problem is that I have no clue what materials would do what and what to use, it wouldn’t have much air resistance because it’s flat, it wouldn’t have much drag because of the flat design and the housing being smoothed out, and I know that the least friction possible is necessary to win the competition. I do not know if I should slim the middle of the car or not, don’t know what length the car should be (max 305mm, min 200mm) and don’t know what lubricant I should use to minimize surface friction from the balsa wood onto the tires and axels, there is a minimum weight limit also, and the car must be one continuous piece of wood. I also need to know the best back wheel dimensions or speculations, or if it needs to be offset up or down from the front wheels.

There are 4 tires I have my eye on and two are plastic, two are rubber. The plastic ones are listed first.

premium tires- 35.5mm, 4.6g, 3mm width

GT-FX tires- 34.25mm, 1.4g, 2.15mm width

RUBBER (plastic rims) (width is only the flat edge of the rounded rubber) :

LX tires- 34.05mm, 2.52g, 2mm width

Super C tires- 36.5mm, 2.6g, 3.25mm width

1 Comment
2025/01/08
22:48 UTC

0

Careers in aerodynamics

Hi everyone, sorry to keep asking questions but I’m still trying to figure out what would be the best route for me to take when I get a real job.

I have a few questions regarding this topic and education at University etc. The first question is, what would be the best course to take if I were undecided as to whether I wanted to design F1 cars or aircraft (AERODYNAMICS), aeronautical engineering or aerospace engineering?

My next question is more in relation to salary and hours. I know that F1 starts out pretty badly in both of those but does it improve over time? As in do the hours become more reasonable and pay increase. These aren’t my main reasons for picking F1 design as an ideal future job as I have always had a passion for designing and F1 seems like one of the best routes to take for aerodynamics as it’s competitive and possibly the best area for the topic in all of motorsport, maybe even one of the best in the world for aerodynamic application. Also, what is the situation for pay and hours for aircraft design?

If anyone could help me to answer these questions and give me some more thoughts to sleep on and think about over the next few years that would be great. If I could pick one of the two to do I think it would be F1 because it’s so competitive and much more accessible in my part of the World as for aviation industries I would most likely have to move abroad which is not something I have ever really intended on doing.

So what would you do in my situation and what advice could you give to me, if possible?

Sorry if you’ve seen some of these questions before as I may have asked them, I just feel as though a wide range of answers would be the best thing for me as I can consider every possibility.

4 Comments
2025/01/08
22:31 UTC

1

Need Efficient Cad cleanup tips in Ansys Spaceclaim

0 Comments
2025/01/08
14:32 UTC

5

Future Design Job in Formula 1

So I’ve been thinking recently about what I would like to do for a future job. I was wondering if anybody could tell me about what would be the best route to take if I wanted to be a formula 1 designer in the area of aerodynamics?

I’ve seen jobs advertised by different groups such as Williams, Red Bull (Visa CashApp) and Haas but couldn’t quite figure out which would be the best suited to what I might like to do.

Also, if anybody has any recommendations, what would the salary situation be? It’s definitely not my very first reason for choosing this line of work as a possibility because I love the idea of designing something that works with the air to gain great achievements for the team.

If anybody has any suggestions on possible future jobs/careers on this sector and their main responsibilities and pay, what would be some of the necessary steps that I would have to take to reach this job title. Thanks.

8 Comments
2025/01/06
01:18 UTC

4

Advice needed for modelling etc

So I’m very new to this but have taken an interest in aerodynamics and motorsport and aviation. I was wondering if anybody knows what I can do to get started in design and theory as a beginner. Also, when it comes to creating a model of a design, how would you suggest I do it? Another question, is there any cheap or even free simulation or 3d design software that is available? I probably won’t be looking into that very much but just for an idea or something.

8 Comments
2025/01/04
23:38 UTC

50

How do serations at the trailing edge of wind turbines reduce noise?

14 Comments
2024/12/30
13:02 UTC

0

break away safety wire

0 Comments
2024/12/29
14:54 UTC

11

Can anyone explain the Transonic pressure freeze/ stabilization?

(Excerpt from Transonic Stabilization Laws for Unsteady Aerodynamics and Flutter by Oddvar O. Bendiksen1) "Near Mach 1, a curious phenomenon known as “Mach number freeze” occurs in steady two-dimensional flows; namely, the local Mach number at a point on or near the airfoil surface ahead of the shock “freezes” and becomes essentially independent of the freestream Mach number [1]. In other words, the flow near the airfoil and ahead of the shock can be considered a small perturbation of a sonic flow; and conversely, a sonic flow can be considered a small perturbation of an off-sonic flow [2]. "

Also now since the pressure is "frozen" if you increase the freestream velocity does the area of the supersonic flow region increase to account for conservation of energy?

I can't think of a physical explanation for this phenomenon. Do you guys have any idea?

0 Comments
2024/12/28
14:14 UTC

2

This is so aerodynamically based !!!! Kumbaya !

0 Comments
2024/12/28
06:42 UTC

1

Atmospheric boundary layer for road vehicle aerodynamics.

Hello, I have a question, which might be very stupid, but I can't find any source online on the topic. For external aerodynamics of cars using CFD, would an atmospheric boundary layer inlet profile produce very different results when compared to the normal velocity inlet boundary condition? I am doing an Uni assignment on smoke dispersion due to wind currents, and I had this idea of trying this atmospheric boundary layer inlet profile on my Formula student car. Does anynone know why this is not done in industry? I could take a guess that the gradients are vey small in relation to the car's height, so there is no need to model the atmosphere. Thank you.

1 Comment
2024/12/27
18:58 UTC

15

To the lawn mower racer: who needs aerodynamics?

0 Comments
2024/12/26
13:56 UTC

10

How could I make a lawnmower more aerodynamic for racing?

16 Comments
2024/12/26
00:44 UTC

11

Master's degree for aerodynamicists

Hello, I am an undergraduate student finishing my bachelor in aerospace engineering. I have tried my best to get into entry level aerodynamics jobs but had no luck, even though for some roles I had relevant experience. Is a Master in aerodynamics more or less necessary to work in the field? Also, if you broke into the field without one, are you considering going back to uni to get one? Thanks!!

10 Comments
2024/12/25
08:08 UTC

18

What is the purpose of this cone in front of the hydrofoil wing?

I never saw one on other hydrofoil vehicles.

12 Comments
2024/12/24
13:09 UTC

1

How do I calculate the propellor thrust (in Newtons) from the angular velocity of the propeller

screenshot

I'm trying to make a drone simulator and struggling with calculating the thrust of a propeller. I'm not looking for the most advanced formula out there but just a general relationship (like is it linear or quadratic). Knowing what effect drag has on it is also very important.

It would be nice if there is a formula that takes the amount of blades into account but I think that for something like that to work, you would probably also need a lot of other constants about the propellor geometry.

2 Comments
2024/12/23
16:13 UTC

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