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Post by lqdKaos on Jan 9, 2008 17:33:46 GMT -5
I love this question  Take this for example, At the equator, the circumference of the Earth is 40,070 kilometers, and the day is 24 hours long so the speed is 1670 kilometers/hour ( 1070 miles/hr). The earth rotates from west to east. So, the earth is rotating from west to east at a speed of a little over 1000 mph. If your argument were true, an aircraft would never be able to take off heading west.   my head exploded a while ago....What you are reading now are nothing more than bloddy remnants of what used to be my brain. |
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Post by goods on Jan 10, 2008 9:04:31 GMT -5
aren't we all moving at the same speed as the Earth.... Thats my point. If the aircraft could not take off on a treadmill that matches the rotational speed of the tires, then the aircraft could never take off going west, for in order to do so, the aircraft would have to overcome the speed of the earth's rotation. No see the plane is moving at the same speed as the earth's rotation.... even just sitting on the runway. So if I have a golf ball and I drive down the road at 60mph.. and I toss that golf ball out the window, it too will be traveling 60mph....until it hits something that is not, including atmosphere. Say I take that ball and just toss it up and down in my hand while driving down the road, it stays moving at 60mph. You can talk about rotation all you like... but what about the fact that the Earth is traveling n million miles a second away from the center of the universe? Good thing I am to, if not jumping up in the air would be very dangerous. |
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Post by wizer on Jan 11, 2008 0:18:00 GMT -5
No see the plane is moving at the same speed as the earth's rotation.... even just sitting on the runway. The man has a point. I tried something along the same lines. I was on the freefall ride at Great Adventure, and I had a coin ready to let go...which I did just as I was freefalling. I figured the coin would float in front of me in the air for the few seconds it took to do the freefall. I didn't count on the effect of the air on the quarter though..LOL.. |
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Post by wizer on Jan 30, 2008 14:48:18 GMT -5
This topic will be explained on MythBusters tonight at 9 pm EST on the Discovery Channel.
They will explain why the plane WILL take off.
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Post by bobfromacctg on Jan 30, 2008 15:52:11 GMT -5
I will be interested to see because in my mind, the effect of the wheels turning on the treadmill, prevent any airflow over the wings ERGO, no lift.
I will be interested in seeing this tonight. I had forgotten about it until I saw your post.
My DVR is set and ready to go.
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Post by wizer on Jan 30, 2008 21:43:40 GMT -5
The plane flies.
What a surprise.
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Post by lumpy on Jan 30, 2008 22:12:16 GMT -5
The plane flies. What a surprise. What did they use? A to scale model or something? |
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Post by wizer on Jan 30, 2008 22:17:56 GMT -5
They did a scale model on a treadmill, but the treadmill was too short.
Then they did it on a long piece of burlap, pulling it backwards at the same speed the plane was formerly clocked going forward.
Then they used a full size airplane on a runway with a really long piece of fabric pulled in the opposite direction by a truck.
The plane took off in the last 2 scenarios.
They interviewed the pilot beforehand, who amazingly (to me) was convinced the plane would not fly. After the test he was very surprised.
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Post by lumpy on Jan 30, 2008 22:29:19 GMT -5
It doesn't seem to me that a long piece of fabric or burlap could accurately simulate a treadmill. Sounds like a bad substitution.
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Post by wizer on Jan 30, 2008 22:32:02 GMT -5
What's more important is that they clearly explained that since the planes power is derived from the engine and not it's wheels, that it's irrelevant that the wheels are moving against a treadmill, or a strip of burlap, or anything else for that matter.
The burlap was pulled at exactly the same speed that the plane was clocked to move at during an earlier test run, so theoretically it should have a significant effect on the forward progress of the plane. It had NONE.
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Post by bobfromacctg on Jan 31, 2008 9:00:37 GMT -5
Well, I was wrong about that.
Interesting to say the least.
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Post by wizer on Jan 31, 2008 10:57:57 GMT -5
Well, I was wrong about that. Interesting to say the least. It's ok Bob, no worries. Even the pilot was fooled, and on ENA there was a woman who said she was an "aerospace engineer" and insisted the plane would not move. It's more of a trick question than anything else. Since the power doesn't come from the wheels it doesn't matter what they do, spin forward, backwards, stay still..the plane thrusts forward. I thought of this analogy, which might help. Say you have a car stuck in a snowbank and it's wheels are spinning when the driver hits the gas, but there's no traction so the car doesn't move. Strap a jet engine on the back of the car, fire it up, and guess what? Exactly. Add a wing to that car, and guess what? Exactly. |
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Jaded
Full Member
Posts: 223
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Post by Jaded on Jan 31, 2008 14:10:44 GMT -5
What's more important is that they clearly explained that since the planes power is derived from the engine and not it's wheels, that it's irrelevant that the wheels are moving against a treadmill, or a strip of burlap, or anything else for that matter. The burlap was pulled at exactly the same speed that the plane was clocked to move at during an earlier test run, so theoretically it should have a significant effect on the forward progress of the plane. It had NONE. ______________________________________________________ Although I don't claim to be a scientist - not even close, i'm a people person LOL - the above is the exact reasoning I used when I stated my answer to this thread when you wrote it on another forum. |
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Post by goods on Jan 31, 2008 14:14:35 GMT -5
So I am still right then.
You must have air flowing over the wings for lift.
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Post by wizer on Jan 31, 2008 20:12:27 GMT -5
So I am still right then. You must have air flowing over the wings for lift. Yes, that's correct. Give yourself a Smiley! Wait, I will give it to you. |
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my head exploded a while ago....What you are reading now are nothing more than bloddy remnants of what used to be my brain.
