"Bending" the Laws of Physics for the most difficult law of physics.

[YNM]

You can beat the wind using the wind itself.

Spoiler

Wonder if we can do the opposite way (going upwind with nothing but windpower)...

[kerbiloid]

Can. Doing loops.

[wumpus]

26 minutes ago, YNM said:

You can beat the wind using the wind itself.

Wonder if we can do the opposite way (going upwind with nothing but windpower)...

Assuming the "cylindrical Earth" argument is valid, you can sail two ships against the wind (one of the first things a sailor learns is how to tack).  Not sure if the "use the wheels to drive the fan" method will work, but presumably it is possible.

[Spica]

42 minutes ago, YNM said:

Wonder if we can do the opposite way (going upwind with nothing but windpower)...

You absolutely can, all you need to do is attach a rotor that's twisted the other way to the same vehicle.

In that case, the rotor will act like a turbine that slows the air in the car-fixed frame, and uses that power to drive the wheels.

[YNM]

27 minutes ago, wumpus said:

Assuming the "cylindrical Earth" argument is valid, you can sail two ships against the wind (one of the first things a sailor learns is how to tack).

Yeah I was wondering because of this. There are sail plans that can go very close to the wind and make good progress.

[FleshJeb]

You folks know what to do (If I still played KSP, I'd be working on it now):

 

[YNM]

Extra explanation up (sorry about the title though) :

 

[K^2]

The demo with plank and a "cart" made of rollers is all you really need to understand. If you understand why the cart can outrace the plank that's pushing it in that demo, you shouldn't have any trouble understanding why same works with the wind or any other fluid.

[Shpaget]

Regarding sailing directly up the wind, Kevin Costner settled that 25 years ago.

Unrelated, but a few years before Kevin trimaraned, when I was but a wee lad if about 5, I distincrly remember playing with yoyo placed on the floor and tugging the string. Yoyo would catch up with my hand.