What are air pockets?

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I saw a video of an aeroplane in another subreddit where it literally jumps as if it went on a speed breaker. Why did the aeroplane react like that.

In: Physics

2 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

First you have to understand 2 things

– The surface of the earth is not flat

– Air is NOT uniform.

Depending on airflow, temperature and height of the ground in places the density of air will change, even localized conditions like tornadoes, cyclones and small storms will affect air pressure.

The thing is that airplane lift depends a lot on air currents and air pressure, a drop in air pressure could produce a drop in lift and cause the airplane to drop.

A good example of this is mountain ranges, over a small area there is a large change in air pressure due to the difference in terrain height between mountains and valleys.

Also an object that creates a large heat plum in a colder air area could cause a airflow that can push an aircraft upwards.

Anonymous 0 Comments

The term “**air pocket**” comes from early aviation, a time when pilots flying open-cockpit biplanes took adventurous locals on a rides in their “flying machines”.

These planes, with two wings one above the other, flew at relatively slow speeds. When the plane entered air that, instead of simply sitting there, was flowing slightly upward or slightly downward, the plane’s path was altered slightly upward or slightly downward.

Air pockets do not technically exist, yet it’s an expression that has caught on and is still misused today. Really, what you’re experiencing is **turbulence**.