Parasite Drag is a type of aerodynamic drag experienced by an aircraft due to various non-lift-producing components, such as the fuselage, landing gear, and other protruding structures. It’s one of the two primary components of total drag in aircraft design, the other being induced drag.
Formula: The formula for parasite drag (Dp) is often expressed as follows:
- Dp is the parasite drag (in newtons, N).
- ρ (rho) is the air density (in kilograms per cubic meter, kg/m³).
- V is the velocity of the aircraft (in meters per second, m/s).
- Cd is the coefficient of parasite drag (dimensionless).
- S is the reference area (in square meters, m²).