The Battle of Aerodynamics: Shapes vs. Wind

Overview

Objectives/Goals Our objective was to show how the amount of air resistance on an object would be affected by its shape. Our hypothesis was that the most streamlined shape, a bullet shape, would have the least amount of air resistance. Methods/Materials In this experiment, we suspended four different shapes (bullet, wedge, sphere, and cube) in front of a high powered fan. We then measured the amount of movement caused by the wind to determine air resistance. We repeated the experiment five times, and then calculated an average measurement for each shape. Results The wedge shape consistently showed the least amount of air resistance with an average of 7.8 degrees, followed by the bullet with 9.0 degrees, the sphere with 12.6 degrees, and finally the cube with 13.1 degrees. Conclusions/Discussion Our hypthesis was only partially correct. Our test results did show that streamlined shapes have lower air resistance. However, our prediction that the bullet shape would have the least amount of air resistance was incorrect. We believe that the greater surface area of the bullet shape affected the amount of air resistance measured; therefore, it affected our results.

Competition history

• CSEF 2002 Aerodynamics/ Hydrodynamics · Entry J0113

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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