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What causes the separation of air over the wing during a stall?

User Hakeem
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Final answer:

Air separation over an aircraft's wing that leads to a stall is caused when the angle of attack increases beyond a critical point, disrupting the airflow due to Bernoulli's principle and preventing lift creation. Angular momentum conservation in turbine failures prevents wing damage by allowing components to fly apart. This understanding is essential for safer aircraft design.

Step-by-step explanation:

The separation of air over the wing during a stall in an aircraft occurs when the angle of attack, or the angle between the oncoming air and the wing, increases beyond a critical point. The Bernoulli's principle states that the air flowing over the wing's upper surface speeds up and decreases pressure, creating lift. However, at a high angle of attack, the smooth airflow is disrupted, and the air begins to separate from the wing surface, resulting in a stall because the wing can no longer generate the necessary lift.

Angular momentum conservation also plays a role in aircraft engineering. For example, jet turbines are designed to fly apart rather than transferring angular momentum to the aircraft's wing in the event of a seizure, which prevents the wing from potentially being torn off. When a jet turbine flies apart, each piece retains its angular momentum, satisfying the conservation laws without exerting excessive forces on the wing that could cause structural damage.

Understanding the dynamics of lift and stalls is crucial to designing safer aircraft and ensuring better control during flights, especially in adverse conditions where wind direction and speed can have a significant effect on the aircraft's total velocity.

User SamSPICA
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