# NACA 23012 airfoil

> What is the exact shape of the NACA 23012 airfoil, and what do the digits mean?

- Category: Airfoils › NACA 5-digit
- Kind: Standard part
- Basis: Computed from the NACA equations (Report 460 / Report 610, restated in NASA TM-4741)
- Page: https://xemstudio.com/objects/naca-23012-airfoil/ · JSON: https://xemstudio.com/api/geometry?object=naca-23012-airfoil · Plain text: https://xemstudio.com/objects/naca-23012-airfoil/sheet.txt
- License: dimension sheet CC BY 4.0 (Xem Studio); files Xem Studio Design License (free to use and sell from, not to redistribute as files: https://xemstudio.com/license/)
- Use in every chat: add https://xemstudio.com/mcp as a connector (https://xemstudio.com/use-with-ai/)

## Overall (mm)

| length | width | height |
|---|---|---|
| 100.0 | 20.0 | 12.0 |

**Exact dimensions.** True size, with no printing tolerance added.

## Notes

- NACA 23012 uses the 230 camber line: design lift coefficient 0.3 with maximum camber far forward at 15% chord, and 12% thickness (Aerospaceweb; NASA TM-4741).
- NACA 5-digit sections offer higher CLmax and low pitching moment with low roughness sensitivity, but poor (abrupt) stall and relatively high drag (Aerospaceweb summary).
- Aerospaceweb notes 5-digit sections were used on piston bombers and transports.
- NACA 23012: 5-digit 230 mean line (design lift coefficient 0.3, camber peak at 15 % chord), 12 % thick.
- NACA 5-digit 230xx: '2' × 3/2 = design lift coefficient 0.3; '30' = camber peak at 15 % chord on a simple mean line; last two digits = maximum thickness in % of chord (NACA Report 610; TM-4741).
- Ordinates are in % of chord from the leading edge, computed from the published equations with the closed-trailing-edge thickness coefficient (−0.1036, as in NASA TM-4741). The original reports use an open trailing edge (−0.1015); the difference is under 0.03 % of chord near the trailing edge.
- The file is a 100 mm chord section, 20 mm deep: scale it uniformly to your chord, or import the STEP and sweep or loft it into a wing. Thickness scales with chord; the shape is the same at any size.
- 5-digit code: 1st digit x 3/2 = design CL in tenths; next two digits / 2 = max camber position in tenths c; last two thickness %c (Aerospaceweb)
- 230 camber line: design CL 0.3, max camber at 15% chord (Aerospaceweb; NASA TM-4741 (cl,i = 0.3))
- Thickness: 12% chord (designation)

## Sizes

| x (% chord) | upper x | upper y | lower x | lower y |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| 1.25 | 0.763 | 2.187 | 1.737 | -1.474 |
| 2.5 | 1.916 | 3.214 | 3.084 | -1.883 |
| 5 | 4.427 | 4.663 | 5.573 | -2.353 |
| 7.5 | 7.051 | 5.667 | 7.949 | -2.684 |
| 10 | 9.711 | 6.375 | 10.289 | -2.973 |
| 15 | 15.000 | 7.184 | 15.000 | -3.506 |
| 20 | 20.126 | 7.503 | 19.874 | -3.969 |
| 25 | 25.131 | 7.596 | 24.869 | -4.283 |
| 30 | 30.132 | 7.545 | 29.868 | -4.453 |
| 40 | 40.128 | 7.123 | 39.872 | -4.473 |
| 50 | 50.117 | 6.389 | 49.883 | -4.181 |
| 60 | 60.100 | 5.429 | 59.900 | -3.663 |
| 70 | 70.080 | 4.295 | 69.920 | -2.970 |
| 80 | 80.057 | 3.013 | 79.943 | -2.129 |
| 90 | 90.030 | 1.586 | 89.970 | -1.144 |
| 95 | 95.016 | 0.814 | 94.984 | -0.593 |
| 100 | 100.000 | -0.000 | 100.000 | 0.000 |

## Where the files are

- NACA (NASA Technical Reports Server): [Report 460: The characteristics of 78 related airfoil sections from tests in the variable-density wind tunnel (Jacobs, Ward, Pinkerton, 1933)](https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19930091108) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts
- NASA: [TM-4741: Computer program to obtain ordinates for NACA airfoils (Ladson, Brooks, Hill, Sproles, 1996)](https://www.pdas.com/refs/tm4741.pdf) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts
- Aerospaceweb.org: [NACA Airfoil Series](https://aerospaceweb.org/question/airfoils/q0041.shtml) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts
- NASA Langley (Ladson et al.), NASA TM-4741: [Computer Program to Obtain Ordinates for NACA Airfoils](https://www.pdas.com/refs/tm4741.pdf) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts

## Free STEP/STL (1 parts, Xem Studio Design License, Xem Studio)

Index: https://xemstudio.com/files/hardware/naca-23012-airfoil/index.json · license: https://xemstudio.com/files/hardware/naca-23012-airfoil/LICENSE.md

- naca-23012-airfoil-section-100mm-chord: [STEP](https://xemstudio.com/files/hardware/naca-23012-airfoil/naca-23012-airfoil-section-100mm-chord.step) · [STL](https://xemstudio.com/files/hardware/naca-23012-airfoil/naca-23012-airfoil-section-100mm-chord.stl) — NACA 23012 section, 100 mm chord × 20 mm span, closed trailing edge, 160 points from the equations (scale to your chord)

## Questions

**Why does the 23012 stall sharply?**

5-digit sections trade higher CLmax for poor stall behaviour (Aerospaceweb).

**How thick is the NACA 23012?**

Maximum thickness 12.00 % of chord at 29.9 % chord: 12.00 mm on a 100 mm chord.

**Where is the NACA 23012's camber?**

Maximum camber 1.84 % of chord at 15.0 % chord.

**How do I use it for my wing?**

Scale the 100 mm section to your chord (e.g. 180 mm chord = 180 % scale), then extrude or loft between root and tip sections. For a tapered wing, scale a root and a tip copy and loft between them.

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