how sailships can sail upwind.

Question

I tried to google it and it left me very confused.

In: 306

Answer 1

Imagine that you have a big, heavy box that you want to move across the floor. If you push it straight ahead, it will move in that direction, but if you want to move it in a different direction, you can use a tool like a broom to push it from the side. This is how sailships can sail upwind – they use a big, fluffy blanket called a sail to catch the wind, which pushes the ship in the direction that the wind is blowing.

Because the sail is attached to the ship at an angle, the wind can push the ship in a different direction than the wind is blowing. It’s a little bit like using a broom to push the box, but instead of using your own strength, you’re using the wind to do the work for you!