Lift per unit span (also known as lift coefficient per unit span) is a measure of the lift generated by an airfoil section at an arbitrary spanwise station, normalized by the wing’s span. It’s an important aerodynamic parameter that helps characterize the distribution of lift along the wing’s span.
- : Lift per unit span, representing the lift generated by the local airfoil section normalized by the wing’s span.
- : Density of the free-stream air, typically measured in kilograms per cubic meter ().
- : Freestream velocity (velocity far away from the airfoil), measured in meters per second ().
- : Circulation at the spanwise station , which represents the strength of the vortex system and is often measured in square meters per second ().