Magnus effect

<p>The Magnus effect is a phenomenon that occurs when a <a href="/facts/Spin_(geometry)/yChkz49x">spinning</a> <a href="/facts/Object_(physics)/WhqjK6xo">object</a> is moving through a <a href="/facts/Fluid/tMQ46Tmz">fluid</a>. A <a href="/facts/Lift_(force)/ehQKKaWP">lift force</a> acts on the spinning object and its path may be deflected in a manner not present when it is not spinning. The strength and direction of the Magnus force is dependent on the speed and direction of the rotation of the object.
</p><p>The Magnus effect is named after <a href="/facts/Heinrich_Gustav_Magnus/pjvT8hNQ">Heinrich Gustav Magnus</a>, the German physicist who investigated it. The force on a rotating cylinder is an example of <a href="/facts/Kutta%E2%80%93Joukowski_theorem/Mzc1Y1nG">Kutta–Joukowski</a> lift, named after <a href="/facts/Martin_Kutta/VwJXlfUJ">Martin Kutta</a> and <a href="/facts/Nikolay_Zhukovsky_(scientist)/avfrPXSs">Nikolay Zhukovsky</a> (or Joukowski), mathematicians who contributed to the knowledge of how lift is generated in a fluid flow.
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Magnus effect open-in-new

Magnus effect