Understanding Aerodynamic Lift

Humanity has long been obsessed with heavier-than-air flight, and to this day it remains a topic that is shrouded in a bit of mystery.

The video below takes a detailed look at lift, starting with how it is closely linked to the pressure distribution a body. It covers a few different theories of lift, including the Bernoulli Principle and Newton’s Third Law explanations.

The lift force generated by an airfoil depends not only on the shape of the airfoil, but also on its angle of attack. Stalling is a a dangerous loss of lift that occurs when the angle of attack exceeds a critical value. This is covered in detail in the video.

Circulation is another key aspect of lift that it is important to grasp to develop a more complete understanding so that’s covered too, as is the Kutta condition, the principle that explains how flow leaves the trailing edge of the airfoil.

Scroll to Top