Re:Honda system confused by Alonso taking Pouhon flat
by plafl on Sunday August 27, 2017 @04:05AM
(#15109673)
Power consumption at enough speed is determined by drag, which depends quadratically with speed
[ Parent
| on HN ]
Re:Honda system confused by Alonso taking Pouhon flat
by philjohn on Sunday August 27, 2017 @04:20AM
(#15109706)
And these cars have quite a lot of drag to give them downforce. The truly amazing cars have "efficient" downforce, which is where for a given level they've managed it with lower drag than the competition.
Some examples of low-drag downforce are if they can force vortices along the sides of the floor from elements on the front wing, which gives them similar benefits to the ground-effect skirts that Lotus and Williams used to great effect at the tail end of the 70s.
What's amazing is when you see an F1 car in humid conditions, because you can make out the vortices from the rear wing.
Re:Honda system confused by Alonso taking Pouhon flat
by InitialLastName on Sunday August 27, 2017 @09:39AM
(#15110726)
It's also impressive to see them in the rain, because the spray coming off the back of the car [0] shows you exactly how much air the cars are moving to get the downforce they have.
[0]: https://www.jamesallenonf1.com/wp-content/uploads/XPB_789346...