The Newtonian Principle


Newtonian
Photo Courtesy of Devon Fitzpatrick, Created with Photoshop
        The Newtonian Principle has been used as an explanation of how airplanes achieve lift.  Newton's Third Law States that for every reaction, there is an equal and opposite reaction.  The photo shown displays the effect of relative initial and final airflow to the wing chord.  
       The reaction happening in the photo is that air is hitting the wing chord, similar to a ball hitting a wall. The air must be deflected, thus confirming that there is an opposite reaction according to Newton's Third Law. Because the wing chord is at an angle theta ø relative to the initial airflow, the final airflow is deflected at a downward angle thus forcing the wing up.  Because the wing is forced upwards in this situation (resulting from Newton's 3rd Law of an opposite reaction), lift is created.
        Many people have chosen to believe that the reason airplanes achieve lift is a combination of Bernoulli's Principle and the Newtonian Principle. Though there are more complex theories created by physicists today, the Newtonian and Bernoulli Principles still continue to be the most popular explanations for aircraft achieving lift.

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