Re: pterosaur take-off analog

["jrc" <jrccea@bellsouth.net>]

Well said.  By way of comparison, while sitting in a Piper J3 at idle power, 
on several occasions I've had a gust lift the plane entirely off the ground 
(only takes a 33 knot gust to do so in that plane).  However, the plane 
immediately starts accelerating aftward and the relative windspeed drops too 
low to support the plane after approximately one second.  The same happens 
with large pterosaurs.  Your choices when that happens are to fly 
momentarily and then land, or to add power and fly away.  It's no big deal 
in either case -- just depends upon your intent of the moment.
JimC

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Habib" <habib@jhmi.edu>
To: <davidrpeters@charter.net>
Cc: "Mike Habib" <mhabib5@jhmi.edu>; "dinosaur mailing list" 
<dinosaur@usc.edu>
Sent: Monday, October 05, 2009 9:20 AM
Subject: Re: pterosaur take-off analog


> , and it is  almost impossible to launch a large one by gusts alone (easy 
> to lift  it off the substrate very briefly, but that's not sustainable).