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For many sailing craft 45° on either side of the wind is a no-go zone, where a sail is unable to mobilize power from the wind. Sailing on a course as close to the wind as possible—approximately 45°—is termed beating, a point of sail when the sails are close-hauled. At 90° off the wind, a craft is on a beam reach.
Points of sail: the shaded area is the "no-sail" zone. Beating to windward on short (P1), medium (P2), and long (P3) tacks, each with a progressively wider corridor over the water. Sails are limited in how close to the direction of the wind they can power a sailing craft. The area towards the wind defining those limits is called the "no-sail zone".
Lift on a sail (L), acting as an airfoil, occurs in a direction perpendicular to the incident airstream (the apparent wind velocity, V A, for the head sail) and is a result of pressure differences between the windward and leeward surfaces and depends on angle of attack, sail shape, air density, and speed of the apparent wind.
Sailing relies on the physics of sails as they derive power from the wind, generating both lift and drag. On a given course, the sails are set to an angle that optimizes the development of wind power, as determined by the apparent wind, which is the wind as sensed from a moving vessel.
Sailing into the wind is a sailing expression that refers to a sail boat's ability to move forward despite being headed into (or very nearly into) the wind. A sailboat cannot make headway by sailing directly into the wind ( see "Discussion," below); the point of sail into the wind is called " close hauled ".
Velocity made good, or VMG, is a term used in sailing, especially in yacht racing, indicating the speed of a sailboat towards (or from) the direction of the wind. [1] [2] The concept is useful because a sailboat cannot sail directly upwind, and thus often can not, or should not, sail directly to a mark to reach it as quickly as possible.
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A tack is the windward side of a sailing craft (side from which the wind is coming while under way)—the starboard or port tack. Generally, a craft is on a starboard tack if the wind is coming over the starboard (right) side with sails on port (left) side. Similarly, a craft is on a port tack if the wind is coming over the port (left).