Relative Wind - Relative Wind in Freefall

Relative Wind in Freefall

Relative wind is also used to describe the airflow relative to an object in freefall through an atmosphere, such as that of a person's body during the freefall portion of a skydive or BASE jump. In a normal skydive the vertical descent of the skydiver creates an upward relative wind. The relative wind strength increases with increased descent rate.

The relative wind is directly opposite to the direction of travel.

Therefore, when a skydiver exits a forward-moving aircraft such as an aeroplane, the relative wind emanates from the direction the aeroplane is facing due to the skydiver's initial forward ( horizontal ) momentum. As aerodynamic drag gradually overcomes this forward momentum and, simultaneously, gravity attracts the skydiver downward, the relative wind alters proportionally into an upward (vertical) direction. This creates an arc of travel for the skydiver similar to water flowing from a low pressure hose held horizontally and creates a variation in the angle of the relative wind from horizontal to vertical.

When exiting from a forward-moving aircraft (as distinguished from a hovering aircraft, such as a balloon or a helicopter in hover mode) during a normal belly-to-earth skydive, the skydiver must arch his body in the direction of travel which is initially horizontal. If the skydiver continues to arch, his belly will gradually alter pitch until he is belly-to-earth. This section of the jump is commonly referred to as "the hill".

Relative wind differs from the wind in meteorology in that the object (e.g., the skydiver) moves past the air, as opposed to the air moving past the object.