The cross-sectional area of the Rolls-Royce Olympus Variant engine or any other object is a measure of the area of a plane that is perpendicular to the direction of flow. In aircraft design, this area is typically measured in square meters (m²) or square feet (ft²). The formula to calculate the cross-sectional area (A) depends on the shape of the object:
- Cross-Sectional Area (A) is the area through which the air is flowing, usually measured in square meters (m²) or square feet (ft²).
- Velocity (V) represents the airspeed or velocity of the airflow entering the engine, typically measured in meters per second (m/s) or feet per second (ft/s).
- Mass Flow Rate (ṁ) is measured in kilograms per second (kg/s) or pounds per second (lb/s).
- Density (ρ) is the air density, usually measured in kilograms per cubic meter (kg/m³) or slugs per cubic foot (sl/ft³).