If the angle of attack is kept constant and airspeed doubles, the lift produced at the higher speed will be what?

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Multiple Choice

If the angle of attack is kept constant and airspeed doubles, the lift produced at the higher speed will be what?

Explanation:
Lift at a fixed angle of attack scales with dynamic pressure, which is proportional to V^2: L = q S Cl, with q = ½ ρ V^2. If the air density and wing geometry stay the same and the angle of attack doesn’t change, Cl stays about the same, so lift follows V^2. Doubling speed makes V^2 increase by a factor of four, so lift becomes four times larger. That’s why quadruples is the correct result. The other options would require a different dependence on speed or a change in Cl, which isn’t the case here.

Lift at a fixed angle of attack scales with dynamic pressure, which is proportional to V^2: L = q S Cl, with q = ½ ρ V^2. If the air density and wing geometry stay the same and the angle of attack doesn’t change, Cl stays about the same, so lift follows V^2. Doubling speed makes V^2 increase by a factor of four, so lift becomes four times larger. That’s why quadruples is the correct result. The other options would require a different dependence on speed or a change in Cl, which isn’t the case here.

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