The basic physics of how a sailboat moves is pretty simple when wind blows straight into it: the sails fill with wind, which pushes the boat forward on the water. But when the wind is angled, a more complex set of physics comes into play.
When a sailboat moves angled into the wind, air hits the sails and creates lift. This is the same principle that makes airplane wings move. But when a plane flies into the wind, the lift isn’t generated at just one point — it’s created all over the surface of the wing. A sailboat’s keel is a similar shape, and it too creates lift. The boat’s keel also resists sideways motion, so if the force of the sails tries to push the boat sideways, the keel and hull redirect that effort into forward motion.
But this isn’t to say that a sailboat is invincible against big swells and towering seas. The larger the boat is, the more resistance it has to being tossed around by big winds and waves.
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