Turbulence on an airplane.

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Like why does the plane become bumpy and shake up and down when your flying through the air?

In: Physics

3 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Imagine a toy plane travelling through jello… if you disturb the jello, the plane will shake.

Or how about if you’ve ever been in a boat and you’re hitting waves.

The same happens with large air masses, turbulence comes from disturbances caused by thermal (hot air) or mechanical means (coming off the landscape).

Anonymous 0 Comments

Turbulent air is air with lots of chaotic motion in it. Think: swirls and wild currents. The air may be stirred up for a variety of reasons, but when the plane flies through it the chaotic motion of the air shakes the plane around.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Air is not uniform: it has lots of pockets that differ in temperature and humidity. Warmer pockets will be less dense than colder pockets, which means passing through one will create “uneven” lift, causing the plane to briefly drop/rise as it passes through. We experience this as turbulence.