In: Physics
6. One morning while waiting for class to begin, you are reading a newspaper article about airplane safety. This article emphasizes the role of metal fatigue in recent accidents. Metal fatigue results from the flexing of airframe parts in response to the forces on the plane especially during take off and landings. As an example, the reporter uses a plane with a take off weight of 200,000 lbs and take off speed of 200 mph which climbs at an angle of 30o with a constant acceleration to reach its cruising altitude of 30,000 feet with a speed of 500 mph. The three jet engines provide a forward thrust of 240,000 lbs by pushing air backwards. The article then goes on to explain that a plane can fly because the air exerts an upward force on the wings perpendicular to their surface called "lift." You know that air resistance is also a very important force on a plane and is in the direction opposite to the velocity of the plane. The article tells you this force is called the "drag." Although the reporter writes that some metal fatigue is primarily caused by the lift and some by the drag, she never tells you their size for her example plane. Luckily the article contains enough information to calculate them, so you do.
1. Focus (on) the Problem.
2. Describe the Physics
3. Plan a Solution
4. Execute Your Plan
5. Evaluate the Answer