BERNOULLI'S PRINCIPLE

Daniel Bernoulli
Swiss physicist and mathematician who made important
1 discoveries in hydrodynamics.

Born into family of mathematicians on Feb. 8th, 1700, he was the

2 only member of the family to make a mark in physics.

Received his doctorate in Basel, Switzerland.

3
 • Fluids move from an area
of high pressure to an

Pressure area of low pressure

• Bernoulli's principle
states that the faster the

and Moving
fluid moves the less
pressure the fluid exerts.
The speed of moving
fluid increases, the

Fluids
pressure exerted by the
fluid decreases.
 • As the speed of a
moving fluid increases,

Bernoulli’s
the pressure within
the fluid decreases.
• Think about the paper

Principle experiment…the air

above the paper
moves, but the air
the faster a fluid moves, the below the paper does
less pressure the fluid exerts. not.
• The moving air has
less pressure than the
still air, and the still air
pushes the paper up.
Bernoulli’s Principle
Quick stream = low air pressure
Pressure in a moving
stream exerts less
pressure than the air
surrounding the moving
stream Slow stream = High air pressure
Bernoulli & flight
• Bernoulli’s Principle is
what allows birds and
planes to fly.
• The secret behind
flight is ‘under the
wings.’
The air on top of the wing must travel a longer
distance than the air below the wing. But, air on
both sides must reach the end of the wing at the
same time. Therefore, the air on top of the wing
traveling faster = less air pressure.

Creates Lift

AIR
Below is a NASA illustration of what surface pressure is exerted
on what surface areas of the wing. Is this plane ascending or
descending?
This diagram shows regions of air pressure around specific
areas of the wing. Again, notice that the low pressure region is
above the wing, allowing for upward thrust.
 LIFT

DRAG THRUST

GRAVITY
•The engines provide THRUST.
•The wings provide LIFT.
•Gravity provides the ‘G force.’
•And, fluid friction provides the DRAG.