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van Nierop EA, Alben S, Brenner MP. How bumps on whale flippers delay stall: an aerodynamic model. Phys Rev Lett. 2008;100(5):054502doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502.
van Nierop, E. A., Alben, S., & Brenner, M. P. (2008). How bumps on whale flippers delay stall: an aerodynamic model. Physical review letters, 100(5), 054502. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502
van Nierop, Ernst A, et al. "How bumps on whale flippers delay stall: an aerodynamic model." Physical review letters vol. 100,5 (2008): 054502. doi: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502
van Nierop EA, Alben S, Brenner MP. How bumps on whale flippers delay stall: an aerodynamic model. Phys Rev Lett. 2008 Feb 08;100(5):054502. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502. Epub 2008 Feb 07. PMID: 18352375.
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Phys Rev Lett. 2008 Feb 08;100(5):054502. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502. Epub 2008 Feb 07.

How bumps on whale flippers delay stall: an aerodynamic model.

Physical review letters

Ernst A van Nierop, Silas Alben, Michael P Brenner

Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.

PMID: 18352375 DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.054502

Abstract

Wind tunnel experiments have shown that bumps on the leading edge of model humpback whale flippers cause them to "stall" (i.e., lose lift dramatically) more gradually and at a higher angle of attack. Here we develop an aerodynamic model which explains the observed increase in stall angle. The model predicts that as the amplitude of the bumps is increased, the lift curve flattens out, leading to potentially desirable control properties. We find that stall delay is insensitive to the wavelength of the bumps, in accordance with experimental observations.

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