moment coefficient

Consequently the pitching moment coefficient for a symmetric airfoil is zero.

The pitching moment coefficient is important in the study of the longitudinal static stability of aircraft and missiles.

Pitching moment coefficient is fundamental to the definition of aerodynamic center of an airfoil.

The non-dimensional arching moment coefficient, , is given by:

For two-dimensional flow, the net result is that the and also the lift and moment coefficients are increased by the factor over the incompressible-flow values:

Conventional cambered airfoils supported at the aerodynamic center pitch nose-down so the pitching moment coefficient of these airfoils is negative.

The combination of the two concepts of aerodynamic center and pitching moment coefficient make it relatively simple to analyse some of the flight characteristics of an aircraft.

C - Pitching Moment Curve Slope (derivative of Pitching Moment Coefficient with respect to angle of attack)

These images, combined with the recorded flight time history, can be used to obtain critical aerodynamic parameters such as lift, drag, static and dynamic stability, flow characteristics, and pitching moment coefficients.

The adjusted Fisher-Pearson standardized moment coefficient is the version found in Excel and several statistical packages including Minitab, SAS and SPSS.

If the moment is divided by the dynamic pressure, the area and chord of the airfoil, to compute a pitching moment coefficient, this coefficient changes only a little over the operating range of angle of attack of the airfoil.

The aerodynamic center is defined to be the point on the chord line of the airfoil at which the pitching moment coefficient does not vary with angle of attack, or at least does not vary significantly over the operating range of angle of attack of the airfoil.