Term	Explanation
VSM	Vortex Step Method, an enhanced lifting line method that improves upon the classic approach by solving the circulation system at the three-quarter chord position, among the most important details.
LLM	Lifting Line Method
AIC	Aerodynamic Influence Coefficient (AIC). The AIC matrix represents the relationship between the induced velocities or pressures on aerodynamic surfaces and the circulation strength or modal deformations of the lifting surfaces.
inviscid	A fluid flow in which viscosity is considered negligible or zero. This means that there is no internal friction between the fluid layers, and the effects of viscosity on the flow are assumed to be insignificant.
Panel	Flat surface element in 3D that approximate the contour of the aerodynamic body being studied.
Section	A wing section, also known as an airfoil or aerofoil, is the cross-sectional shape of an aircraft wing.
Span	Distance from one wing tip to the other wing tip.
Polar	The polar typically plots the coefficient of lift (CL) against the coefficient of drag (CD), with the angle of attack as a parameter along the curve.
Distribution	Vector of scalars. Length: number of panels.
mu $\mu$	Dynamic viscosity [N·s/m²]
alpha $\alpha$	Angle of attack [rad]
beta $\beta$	Elevation angle of the kite [rad]
beta_s $\beta_s$	Side slip angle [rad]
delta $\delta$	Angle of the trailing edge’s deformation relative to the chord [rad]
theta $\theta$	Angle between the panel’s chord and the kite body x-axis, showing twist [rad]
gamma $\Gamma$	The circulation, which is a measure of the rotational speed of the spinning flow in a vortex [m²/s].
CL, cl	Lift coefficient [-]
CD, cd	Drag coefficient [-]
CS, cs	Side force coefficient [-]
CM, cm	Pitching moment coefficient [-]
camber	The camber of a kite refers to the curvature of its airfoil shape. The camber is typically measured as the maximum distance between the mean camber line (the line equidistant from the upper and lower surfaces) and the chord line of the airfoil.
chord line	The chord line of an airfoil is an imaginary straight line that connects the leading edge (front) to the trailing edge (back) of the airfoil.