PaperplaneConundrum

WhatPaperPlaneDesignallowsthePlanetoglidethefarthest?

JohnFrederickJarvis
10.08.2015
TH
8 GRADEACCSCIENCE|ArnonePeriod1|

INTRODUCTION

Airplanesrevolutionizedthewaywetravel,conductwar,andopenedupan
entirelynewbranchofscientificresearchbuthowdotheywork?Airplanesallfallunder
thestudyofAerodynamics(thestudyofforceandtheresultingmotionofanobject
throughair)thatstudiedhowplanesfly.Thefourforcesofflightareasfollows:Drag(the
forcethatcausestheobjecttoslowdown),Weight(Gravity'saffectonanobjectsmass),
Lift(Theabilityforanobjecttomoveup),andfinallythrust(Theabilityanobjecthasto
moveforward).Inorderforaplanetogoup,andstraightboththeLiftandtheThrust
mustovercometheburdenofdragandgravity.Planeshavecurvedwingssothattheair
pressurecanslideoveritsotheweightfromtheairdoesntcausetheplanetomove
down.Takingallofthisintoaccounthelpedmebuildmydesgins.

HYPOTHESIS

IfImadeaplanewithanopenmiddle,andbentwingsoneachendthentheairwould
maketheplaneglidestraightforlongerbecausetheairwouldpushrightdownthe
middleoftheplane

PROCEDURE

1. Make3differentpaperairplanesofdifferentdesignswiththesamematerial
2. Pickaspottothrowyourairplaneskeepmeasuringtapewithyou
3. Tosseachpaperairplaneatatatime
4. Repeatstep3,3individualtimesforeachpaperairplane
5. Recordthedistanceofeachplaneforall3throws

MATERIALS

1. PrinterPaperx3
2. MeasuringTape
3. Anotepadtorecordthedata

DATA

 Airplanes Distance(inMeters) Throws

Design1 4|5|5 1|2|3

Design2 2|1|2 1|2|3

Design3 3|3|3 1|2|3

CONCLUSION

Inconclusion,thepaperairplanedesigncompletelyfollowingmyhypothesishad
thefurthestdistanceeachthrowcomparedtotheotherdesigns.Duringtheexperiment,
eachthrowcausedalittlebitmoredamagetoeachplanecausingitspointtobesmashed
inattheend.Hopefully,notaffectingtheexperiment.Myhypothesiswassupported
provingtomethathavingthemiddleofyourplanecompletelyflatallowstheairtopass
throughthemiddlecausinglessairdrag.Iwouldmakemyplanesofstudiermaterialso
thattheplanesdidntgetwearandtearfromuse.Iwouldalsotossmyplanesmorethan
3timesjustincaseitwasntjustabadthrowtoblameforashortdistance.Ifeelmy
projectwasasuccessbecauseIlearnedtheeffectsofdragonmyotherplanesandhow
importantitistocurvewingssothattheairpressuredoesntruinyourflight.

REFERENCES

1. Dunbar, Brian. "Aerodynamics." NASA. NASA, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2015.

2. Hall, Nancy. "Beginner's Guide to Aerodynamics." Beginner's Guide to Aerodynamics.
NASA, 5 Mar. 2015. Web. 09 Oct. 2015.