The Windward Turn Theory

[Wizofoz]

Originally Posted by Jet_Fan

According to NASA: https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/move2.html



and:




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but the sign of the wind speed has changed with the reference velocity direction.

They are talking velocity, not speed.

Try it this way- if you drive your car in reverse at -30KPH for an hour, how far are you from your origin?

That figure is a MAGNITITUDE (which is what scalar quantities like speed reference)- they do not have positive or negative signs. if you are 30K from where you were an hour ago, your average SPEED has been 30K/PH.

If you want to reference an origin and call a direction from it negative, you can, but this is velocity, not speed.