Why aren't planes dimpled like golf balls?
Question of the Week, from the Naked Scientists
English - June 15, 2020 02:49 - 3 minutes - 3.26 MB - ★★★★ - 1 ratingLife Sciences Science Natural Sciences science facts scientific mysteries physics chemistry biology cosmology Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
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Darren got in touch to ask us: "Golf balls are dimpled to disrupt the air around the ball. As far as I can gather, this reduces their drag and allows them to fly further than they would if they were perfectly round. Why do we not see dimpled cars, aircraft, and trains? If this effect is so effective for golf balls, why not use it on Formula 1 cars, for instance?"Adam Murphy went looking for a hole-in-one to this question, and spoke to Sam Grimshaw from the Whittle Lab at the University of Cambridge... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists