that does not have to do with treadmills.

Why is it that those people using wingsuits always descend?

I know that sounds stupid, but why can’t they use the earth’s heat to stay aloft for longer periods of time, and even gain altitude, much like a glider?

I’m neither a physicist or a flying buff but i would hazard a guess that it is to do with the small amount of surface area not providing enough lift to overcome the gravitational effect of the falling fella.

Gravity / mass vs lift…?

I can see your thinking – a buzzard (or glider), for example, will circle around on thermals and get lift without flapping (power). The lift generated by their wings is more than required to counteract gravity acting on their mass.

Mr Wingsuit:
a) doesn’t have a wing that generate enough lift
b) is too heavy and needs to read the STW calorie counting / diet / fitness threads

You need long thin wings to glide efficiently, like a glider. Plus, they’re are’t exactly nice and streamlined.

Those wingsuits have a glide ratio of 2.5 (2.5m along for every 1 metre dropped) as opposed to 50m+ for a glider.

Right – it’s about surface area. Soaring human flight is possible, but you need the surface area of a paraglider to achieve it.

well done, you just invented the paraglider.

about 20 years late mind…

aye with thermals – or where horizontal wind is being deflected upwards where it runs into a pronounced ridge in the mountains, a glider/buzzard is still falling, but the air through which he is falling is rising at a faster rate than the glider/buzzard is falling.

Gravity / * mass vs lift…?

Gravity / mass vs lift…?

English expression. Not intended as a mathematical expression 🙄

😀

apparently they built that big thing in CERN to try to find out if the BMX sequence in ET could ever be replicated in an alternative universe

i’m having a go at juggling some quarks in the garden shed and reckon am getting pretty close