Experimental investigation on the aerodynamic drag of basketballs: Effects of surface characteristics, inflation pressure and yaw angle

Currently, only a limited number of studies have conducted basic measurements and evaluations of the aerodynamic drag coefficient (C D ) of basketballs. Through wind tunnel experiments, this study investigates the variations in aerodynamic drag and drag coefficients of basketballs across different degrees of surface wear, inflation pressures, yaw angles, and surface roughness characteristics. The results indicate that the C D of a basketball gradually decreases with increasing flight speed and tends to stabilize (C D decreased from 0.5–0.55 to 0.3–0.4). Basketballs with lower inflation pressure experience slightly higher aerodynamic drag. A yaw angle of 0° results in the minimum C D . Furthermore, different surface textures exert varying influences on the C D at different flight speeds; basketballs with rougher surfaces exhibit higher C D at low flight speeds but lower C D at high flight speeds compared with basketballs with smoother surfaces. A mild "drag crisis" was observed across all tested scenarios.