Dynamic soaring: aerodynamics for albatrosses

Abstract

Albatrosses have evolved to soar and glide efficiently. By maximizing their lift-to-drag ratio L/D, albatrosses can gain energy from the wind and can travel long distances with little effort. We simplify the difficult aerodynamic equations of motion by assuming that albatrosses maintain a constant L/D. Analytic solutions to the simplified equations provide an instructive and appealing example of fixed-wing aerodynamics suitable for undergraduate demonstration.