Soaring

Glider Winch Launch Simulation - A mathematical model of the launching process illustrates the variation in the magnitudes of the speeds, forces and power required for a good winch launch.
Winch Launch Simulation Results

Soaring at Sugarbush, VT - Description of soaring with aerial pictures, GPS tracks, barogarph plots and maps. The descriptions includes pictures of scenic Vermont.

• Soaring in 2013 - two days of wave and one of thermal soaring.
• Soaring in 2007 in which, like 2006 I experienced wave, ridge, and thermal soaring.
• Four Days of Soaring in 2006 in which there is wave soaring, ridge flying and thermalling.
• Description of flights at Sugarbush in 2000 including 5 high wave flights. This includes description of the wave and the geography around the Sugarbush-Warren airfield. This was my first experience flying at this marvelous site.

Some Physics applied to Soaring
Turn and Bank Explanation

Cross Country Calculator for distance around a triangle and location given distance and bearing.
(Java Script Calculator)

Soaring Training and Instruction Documents

• Basic Glider Aerodynamics
  as necessary to explain gliding and soaring in a glider. (6 pages - 354 kB)
• Glider Flying Stability
  A page of diagrams showing the effects of shape and controls on the stable flight of a sailplane. (53 kB)
• Wing Airfoil Properties
  Graphs showing the dependence of lift of a wing with shape, speed, and angle of attack (1 page 34 kB) Uses the program Foilsim
• Advanced Sailplane Aerodynamics
  This gives more technical aspects of the operation of a sailplane and discusses the parameters considered for design of an efficient aircraft. (7 pages 192 kB)
• Glider Navigation
  Basic instruction for the use of maps for navigation and consideration for navigation during wind conditions. Discussion of glide slope for sailplanes in wind conditions. (4 pages 1.0 Mb)
• Glider Instruments
  This explains the operational principle behind the essential instruments in the glider cockpit. It also gives the pilot the knowledge to fix or assemble their own plumbing that operates the instruments. ( 7 pages 460 kB)
• Interpreting Weather for Soaring
  A presentation of the factors that determine good soaring weather. Emphasis is on predicting when the soaring weather from available weather data - with example exercises. Discussion of the soaring weather in Nova Scotia. Example of a Wave Flight in Nova Scotia. ( 9 pages - 1.05 Mb)
• GPS and Recording your Flights
  Explanation of the theory and operation of Global Positioning Systems. Discussion and illustration of the use of a GPS and flight recorder to record flights. This shows the value of a flight recorder in learning to soar efficiently. (6 pages 510 kB)

Created on ... August 20, 2006-revised July 2010