Physical Science

Mrs.Alada
Siara Mia Perez
9-3
August 26, 2021
Airplane Lab
 Paper Airplane

Aerodynamics is the way air moves around things. Anything that moves through
the air reacts to aerodynamics. Aerodynamics even acts on cars, since air flows
around cars. The shape of an airplane’s wings is what makes it able to fly. Airplane
wings are curved on the top and flat on the bottom; that shape makes airflow over
the top versus under the bottom. Thus, there is less air pressure on top of the wing.
This condition makes the wing and the airplane it is attached to move up. Using
curves to change air pressure is a trick used on many aircraft.
To fly, an aircraft needs something to push it on the opposite direction from gravity
since the weight of an object controls how strong the push must be. For an aircraft
to move upward, it must have more lift than weight, so the lift of an airplane comes
from its wings. Drag is a force that tries to slow something down. It makes it hard
for an object to move. Thrust is the force that is the opposite of drag. It is the push
that moves something forward. The shape of an object changes the drag and the
thrust changes depending on the drag. (What Is Aerodynamics? | NASA)
Variables:

Independent variable: Size of the airplane

Dependent variable: Distance

Hypothesis: The small airplane will have more fly time because it weighs less.
First airplane: The bulldog dart modified (20 of The Best Paper Airplane Designs -
Hative)
Steps:
1 4

2 5

3 6
Second Airplane: Mini Paper Airplane (paper-airplane.png (1218×870)
(skyhighhobby.com))
Steps:
1) Fold in half lengthwise.
2) Fold the upper edges to the centerline.
3) Fold the triangle downward along its lower edge.
4) Fold the tip of the triangle up to the top to locate the halfway point, then
unfold.
5) While firmly holding the center in place, fold both upper conners to the
middle.
6) Fold in half and fold the sides in shape of a cone.
7) And it is ready to fly.
Quantitative Data:
Plane 1 2 3

A 80inch 222inch 116inch

B 147inch 134inch 139inch

Qualitative Data:
A:
1) It did a circle; it went straight and then it turned back.
2) It went straight and landed with twirling.
3) Started twirling and landed twirling.
B:
 1) Got stuck in a mosaic midair.
2) Twirled all the way and landed straightly.
3) Went high up and then twirled to the ground.

Analysis:
Airplane A, which was the bigger airplane, in the first attempt, as shown on the
graph, basically did not fly. It just took an impulse and fell. On the next attempt,
it got a harder thrust and flew for a longer distance. The flight distance is shown
on the chart, demonstrating that it had the longest flying distance. On the last
attempt, it just started twirling and even landed twirling but still was able to get a
little bit of fly time; as shown on the chart, the fly distance decreased.
As shown on the chart, Airplane B, which was the smaller airplane, flew the
shortest distances. In the first attempt, it got a hard thrust but got stuck in a mosaic
and did not get fly time. On the second attempt, the distance decreased even
further. It twirled up and landed straight to the ground. On the last attempt, it got a
thrust that made it go up high and then just twirled and crashed to the ground.
Conclusion:
In summary, the hypothesis was incorrect because the airplane wings were curved
on the top and flatter on the bottom. Such a shape, the one that Airplane A had,
makes airflow more over the top than under the bottom. Since less air pressure is
on top of the wing, this condition makes the wing and the airplane it is attached to
move up. Since airplane B had too much drag, it always made the airplane heavy,
making it land too quickly. Even though it was smaller, the thrust, drag, and weight
needed to be balanced, but it was not. Airplane A was balanced and was able to
have more fly time and a long distance.