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  #13  
Old September 18th 05, 01:52 AM
Tony
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Here's a little experiment that will be eye opening. Drive at 60 mph,
hold your hand out the window as though you were hand signaling for a
left turn (in the US, at least) with your palm facing downward.

OK, now the leading (thumb) edge up. What do you feel? Is your hand
being sucked upward, is the skin on the back of your hand being bowed
outward?

Or, are you feeling air ram into the palm of your hand, pushing it
upward?

If it feels as though it's sucked upward, the 'low pressure on top of
the wing' model makes a lot of sense. If it feels like it's being
pushed upward, you might consider conservation of momentum models,
where the stream of air is being diverted downward by your hand, and
that old saw about for ever action there's an equal but opposite
reaction comes into play.

OK, your hand doesn't have the contour of a wing. What do you think
you'd feel if you made the leading edge take on a wing like curve? I'd
bet, the same thing.

Finally, think about how some airplanes with 'correctly' shaped wings
fly upside down, and ask you that could be. But mainly, remember your
hand being pushed up, not being sucked up, when you put it in a fast
moving airstream.