Aiming accurately does not necessarily mean you can shoot accurately. What scientific principles are involved in archery?

Whether in the East or the West, archery has been an important combat skill since ancient times. Although bows and arrows are no longer used as weapons on the battlefield, archery is still a popular sport.

When first getting into archery, many novices spend a lot of time aiming. But strangely, even though they have clearly aimed the arrow at the center of the target, the arrow always flies off target. Why is that? In fact, the reason why the arrow misses the target is because the aim is too accurate. On the surface, it seems that the moment we release the bowstring, the arrow will "whoosh" and fly straight out, but in fact, the arrow's flight trajectory is not that straight.

Rather than saying that the arrow flew out straight, it would be more accurate to say that the arrow swam out like a water snake.

If we use modern equipment to film the arrow flying out and then play it back in slow motion, we will find that the arrow's forward trajectory is swaying from side to side. It is actually moving forward while vibrating. This requires us not to simply aim at the center of the target with the arrow, but to find the two nodes on the arrow body and then use the line connecting the two nodes to aim at the target. What are nodes? After the arrow flies out, it will move forward while shaking its head, but no matter how it shakes, there are two points on the arrow body that do not move. These two points are called nodes.

How to find the location of the wave node?

This depends on the archer's experience. The different lengths and hardness of the arrows and the different strength of the bows used will affect the location of the nodes. One of the most important qualities of an archery expert is to be able to accurately find the location of the nodes, and this ability can only be acquired through repeated practice. So why does the arrow have to shake forward instead of flying straight? The main reason why the arrow shakes is friction, and the friction here refers to the friction between the fingers and the bowstring.

There are two common ways of drawing a bow, the Mediterranean style and the Mongolian style. We will take the Mediterranean style as an example to illustrate this issue.

The Mediterranean style uses fingers other than the thumb to pull the bowstring, so the contact point between the fingers and the bowstring is on the right side of the bowstring. When we release the bowstring, the bowstring will produce friction with the right finger, and this friction will cause the bowstring to bounce to the left, so the arrow of the bow will deflect to the right under the action of this force. Next, the bowstring will return to the right, so the arrow will deflect to the left again, and that's it, the arrow will finally swim out swaying left and right. You will definitely think that this shaking is harmful because it increases the difficulty of aiming, but in fact this shaking is beneficial.

In the bow and arrow system, the biggest influence on the flight of the arrow is not the shaking, but the bow body, because the bow body can easily produce friction with the arrow, thus affecting the flight direction of the arrow.

However, because the arrow will swing left and right under the drive of the bowstring, it can avoid friction with the bow. Taking the Mediterranean style as an example, in this bow drawing method, the arrow must be placed on the left side of the bow, because when the bowstring is released, the bowstring will bounce to the left first, thus driving the arrow to swing to the right, thus bypassing the bow body and avoiding friction with the bow body.

What if it is Mongolian style? Then the situation is just the opposite.

The Mongolian style uses the thumb of the right hand to draw the bow, and the thumb is on the left side of the bowstring. So when the bowstring is released, the bowstring will bounce to the right due to the friction with the thumb, which will drive the arrow to the left first. In view of this situation, the arrow must be placed on the right side of the bow to avoid friction with the bow. Now you understand why the Mediterranean style and the Mongolian style both use the right hand to draw the bow, but the former puts the arrow on the left side of the bow, while the latter puts the arrow on the right side of the bow. Of course, the ancients did not know these complex principles when they invented the bow and arrow. They just summed up a series of archery techniques based on their experience in actual use.

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