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Center of mass - Aeronautical significance

Center of mass - Aeronautical significance: Encyclopedia II - Center of mass - Aeronautical significance

The center of mass is an important point on an aircraft, as it defines the amount of mass forward or behind the center of gravity that needs to be moved in order to pitch the plane up or down without applying any external forces. In conventional designs the center of mass is often located very near the line 1/3rd back from the front of the wing. That is the line where most wings generate their lift, known as the center of pressure, so by balancing the plane at that point, the lift and weight balance out with no net torque. The center ...

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Center of mass: Encyclopedia II - Center of mass - Aeronautical significance

Center of mass - Aeronautical significance

In conventional designs the center of mass is often located very near the line 1/3rd back from the front of the wing. That is the line where most wings generate their lift, known as the center of pressure, so by balancing the plane at that point, the lift and weight balance out with no net torque. The center of mass is sometimes moved slightly to the rear of this line in order to provide the plane with a natural "nose up" tendency when lift increases (like when applying more power).

If the balance of the plane is moved too far from the center of mass the control surfaces may have trouble controlling the plane. The actual force generated by the surfaces is typically quite small (a few pounds) but due to their location at the end of the tail (typically) they generate considerable torque to pitch the plane. If the center of mass starts to move away from the center of pressure there will be an increasing amount of constant torque they have to counteract, and if it moves too far, it may be more than the controls can counter.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Aeronautical significance", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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