The question of how the air coming off another car affects your car is one that has been with NASCAR ever since it was discovered in the 60s. It's almost more of a question of making sure you're not in certain places. The closer you are to the wall, the less tolerance you have for air. But if you're running the outer wall, some drivers can take advantage of sort of an cushion of air between the car and the wall.
What difference does the driver make? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly break down the science of NASCAR in Neil’s interview with Dale Earnhardt Jr. with the help of physicist Diandra Leslie-Pelecky.
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What difference does the driver make? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly break down the science of NASCAR in Neil’s interview with Dale Earnhardt Jr. with the help of physicist Diandra Leslie-Pelecky.
NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://startalkmedia.com/show/innovations-in-racing-with-dale-earnhardt-jr/
Thanks to our Patrons Mud Runner, Jeffery Arzt, Valentin Ivan, Stuart Baker, Byron Griffin, and Michele Baldacci for supporting us this week.
Photo Credit: Photograph by D Ramey Logan, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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