Most people believe that a paper airplane is a very basic children's toy that is cheap as well. But beyond the fun and excitement that is gained from playing with paper airplanes, there is a lot to learn about the physics of the plane. Certain factors determine whether or not a paper airplane, which acts as a glider does, will fly well. Some of these factors include lift (which is connected to air pressure), drag and weight. .
Paper airplanes must generate enough lift to oppose the weight. The plane gains lift by moving through the air with the initial velocity that is created by throwing the plane. But, because the plane is flying through the air, it has drag, which is an opposing force like friction on the ground. The paper airplane's velocity will quickly decrease, due to the drag, and the plane will fall to the floor. .
In terms of physic, the airplane is staying afloat because it is trading potential energy for kinetic energy, which equals velocity. As the gliders lose altitude, they convert potential energy into kinetic energy, which keeps the plane in motion. This is an example of the conservation of energy because most of the potential energy is converted into kinetic energy and no energy is lost.
Lift is the aerodynamic force that keeps a plane in motion. In a paper airplane, the wings usually create the lift, but it can be created by any part of a body in flight. The lift is a force that is perpendicular to the wings and "acts through the center of pressure of the object."(www.lerc.nasa.gov) Lift occurs when a flow exists with the airplane. The flow occurs in one direction with the left in the opposite direction. This is according to Newton's Third law of action and reaction forces. The particles are free to move about and interact with the top and the bottom of the wing in order to keep the plane in flight.
There are many factors that determine lift. In order to keep track of these factors, we characterize the lift, by lift coefficients.
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