A sailboat is a boat that relies on wind power to move. Most modern sailboats use a single mast and two sails—the mainsail and the jib. Sailboats may be handcrafted or factory built in a range of sizes, from small day-sailers to larger single-masted boats called dinghies and dinghys, to two-masted vessels called ketches and yawls, and even large yachts patterned after historic sailing vessels such as brigantines, cutters, and clipper ships. Regardless of size, modern sailboats share the same fundamental physics that allows them to float and move, and their designers continue to evolve them for speed, maneuverability, comfort, and aesthetic appeal.
Whenever a sailboat moves at hull speed, it generates a bow wave with a wavelength equal to its water line length. This bow wave crests at the bow and stern, with a well-formed trough in between. If the bow wave is not trimmed properly, it creates eddies that resist movement of the boat. Extensive computer modeling and tank testing has resulted in hull design that is typically wide at the bow and narrower toward the stern to avoid such resistance.
While sails provide lift that propels the boat forward, they can also act as a brake that slows it down. In addition, the long, flat keel submerged underneath the boat creates a sideways force as it pivots upward with motion of the boat, compensating for the lift from the sails. This compensating force is called drag.
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