A sailboat is a boat powered by wind that uses a large, triangular sail to generate thrust and accelerate. Its hull (also known as the keel) extends below the waterline to create both ballast and counterweight to offset the force of the wind on the sails. A rudder blade and tiller are located on the stern to steer the sailboat, which is operated by the crew.
The 19th and 20th centuries shaped what we think of as modern sailboat design. World-famous naval architects and boat builders such as Nathanael Greene Herreshoff perfected small and medium-sized wooden sailing yachts, and new materials like fiberglass and carbon fiber enabled larger, faster craft.
In order to move upwind, a sailing vessel needs to change tacks—moving with the wind so it is blowing over one side of the craft, then the other. Tacking is also required to negotiate an obstruction or channel. The craft may also need to jibe—change the direction it is moving relative to the wind, and do so repeatedly if necessary to reach its destination on a downwind course.
A sailboat’s rigging consists of the main mast and boom, the cleats to fasten lines, backstays and shrouds, halyards (lines that raise and lower sails), spinnaker pole and other smaller components. Other equipment found on a typical sailboat includes the compass and chartplotter, which display a map and position.
The physics of lift—which propels the sailboat into the wind—is complex and controversial, but the most accepted explanation involves air particles moving across both sides of the sail, causing high and low air pressure on either side. This interaction creates drag, which cancels out lift and causes the sailboat to slow down.
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