Segment V3.3: Stagnation Point Flow

(Related to Textbook Section 3.5 - Static, Stagnation, Dynamic, and Total Pressure)

On any body in a flowing fluid there is a stagnation point. Some of the fluid flows "over" and some "under" the body. The dividing line (the stagnation streamline) terminates at the stagnation point on the body.

As indicated by the dye filaments in the water flowing past a streamlined object, the velocity decreases as the fluid approaches the stagnation point. The pressure at the stagnation point (the stagnation pressure) is that pressure obtained when a flowing fluid is decelerated to zero speed by a frictionless process.