Now we know what air pressure is and why water stays in a straw, but what does this have to do with flight? A lot! In 1738, a Swiss mathematician named Daniel Bernoulli made an important discovery. He found that as the speed of a fluid increases, its pressure decreases. This became known as Bernoulli’s Principle (shown at the right).
It is the reasoning behind many everyday occurrences, including our weather, the curve of a baseball, and the lift of an airplane wing. Lift is the force that allows the plane to become airborne and keeps it in the air.
Lift
What is lift?
Lift is the force that allows a plane to become airborne.
