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A Fundamental Principle of Aeronautical Engineering Has Been Overturned
- mhb 4mo agohttps://www.wired.com/story/a-fundamental-principle-of-aeronautical-engineering-has-been-overturned/ https://www.wired.com/story/a-fundamental-principle-of-aeron...
- ferryth 4mo agohttps://archive.ph/sFjKf https://archive.ph/sFjKf
- paulhart 4mo agohttps://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-fluid-mechanics/article/dmr-effect-on-drag-reduction-of-a-streamlined-body-measured-by-magnetic-suspension-and-balance-system/0E3FF950CCC66DEFCBA3D3DCD36CE2B6 https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-fluid-mec...
- ThrowawayTestr 4mo agoA 43% drag reduction is massive if this is applicable to modern planes.
- dyauspitr 4mo ago43% less friction means 43% of fuel saved. Am I reading that right because it will change the world if true.
- tagawa 4mo agoNot quite. - The 43% is peak drag reduction in the transition zone only, the bit between laminar and turbulent flow, not across all flight conditions. - Aerodynamic drag is one part of fuel burn, not a 1:1 proxy. There's also engine efficiency, etc. - This is skin friction drag on a wind tunnel model, not a full aircraft which has extra bits like windscreen wipers. I still think it's exciting but I reckon fuel savings would amount to a few percent (aeronautical engineers, please correct me if I'm wrong).
- amelius 4mo agoDiscussed previously (132 comments): https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48260117 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48260117
- zuzululu 4mo agoAre we just expected to understand Japanese ? There's no English version
- gerdesj 4mo agoIts 2026. Your browser can probably provide a reasonable translation on demand from a nearby service. FF on Linux does, so surely whatever you are rocking can manage it too. There are lots more options.
- zuzululu 4mo agoYes I am aware that it is the year 2026 but I don't use Firefox and there is no way to translate it. Last time I checked HN is still an English language public square, while there's instances of different languages used its more often for the comments.
- TOMDM 4mo agoThe article caters to the majority of hn users that use a browser that automatically translates the article. Chrome on Android certainly did. You are the minority demanding to be catered to.
- filearts 4mo agoI think it is against the spirit of this community to suppress exciting content on the basis of its language. This community is also undoubtedly composed of the kind of problem solver that can overcome this kind of hurdle.
- zuzululu 4mo agoEven then Japanese-English translations are hardly accurate and don't often translate fluently. I'm sorry I refuse to use a browser with automatic AI translation.
- deleted 4mo ago[deleted]
- adamfp 4mo agoAustralian company Mako has been applying ribbed micro-surfaces to aeroplanes for a few years now, with extremely promising results. They talk about reducing skin friction drag but due to the translation I'm not sure if that's what this article is referring to as well.
- VerifiedReports 4mo agoIf this is the previously-discussed one, the difference here is that it's not ribbing so it's not directional.
- syntaxing 4mo agoFluid mechanics was my jam before my software engineer days! Unfortunately, I think the FAA strict regulations will prevent any of the good innovations. But you can do this thing called flow control where you can control where the boundary layer detaches on the wing. You can achieve different L/D ratios and save a TON of fuel cost. NASA supposedly was going to try it on the X-37B but civilians never knew if they did or not.