Sail Dimensions and Sail Area

Calculation
Fore sail and main sail dimensions are universally referenced with the letters 'J', 'I',
'E' and 'P' approximating to the length of the foredeck, height of the mast, length of
the boom and the height of the main sail - but more accurately defined further down
this page...
Yacht designers need these sail dimensions to calculate thought provoking stuff like the sail
area/displacement ratios of their creations, and sailmakers need them before they put scissors
to sailcloth.
If our sailboat's sails were perfectly triangular then, as every schoolboy knows, their area
would be 'half the height, times the base' - but with the possible exception of a mainsail with a
straight luff, generally they're not.
Here's how it works...

Main and Mizzen Sail Dimensions

These are almost right-angled triangles except for the curvature of the leach (the 'roach')
which increases the sail area. It's usually calculated as:~
Area = (luff x foot)/1.8, or
Area = (P x E)/1.8, where:~
'P' is the distance along the aft face of the
mast from the top of the boom to the highest
point that the mainsail can be hoisted.
'E' is the distance along the boom from the aft
face of the mast to the outermost point on the
boom to which the main can be pulled.
For the mizzen sails on ketches and yawls, 'P' and 'E'
relate to the mizzen mast and boom.
For more heavily roached sails, the increased area
can be accounted for by reducing the denominator in
the formula to 1.6. Clearly calculating sail areas isn't
going to be an exact science...

Jibs, Genoas and Stay Sail Dimensions

For a working jib that fills the fore triangle - but no more - and
with a foot that's parallel to the deck, then you've got a 'proper' rightangled triangular sail, whose area is:~
Area = (luff x foot)/2, or
Area = (I x J)/2, where:~
'I' is the distance down the front of mast from the genoa
halyard to the level of the main deck, and
'J' is the distance along the deck from the headstay pin to the front of
the mast.
Genoas, by definition, have a clew which extends past the mast
and are described by the amount by which they do so. For instance a
135% genoa has a foot 35% longer than 'J' and a 155% genoa 55%
longer. Areas are calculated as follows:~
Area (135% genoa) = (1.44 x I x J)/2, and
Area (155% genoa) = (1.65 x I x J)/2

But these formulae don't work for a high-cut with a raised clew.
It's still a simple calculation though, once you know the length of the luff perpendicular (LP),
the sail area is:~
Area = (luff x luff perpendicular)/2, or
Area = (L x LP)/2, where:~
'L' is the distance along the forestay from the headstay pin to the front of the mast
'LP' is the shortest distance between the clew and the luff of the genoa.

Spinnaker Sail Dimensions

Much like calculating foresail areas, but with different multipliers for conventional spinnakers
and asymmetric spinnakers...
Conventional Spinnakers
Area = (1.8 x luff x foot), or
Area = (1.8 x I x J), where:~
'I' is the distance from the highest spinnaker halyard to the deck, and
'J' is the length of the spinnaker pole.
Asymmetric Spinnakers
Area = (1.65 x luff x foot), or
Area = (1.65 x I x J), where:~
'I' is the distance from the highest spinnaker halyard to the deck.
'J' is the distance from the front face of the mast to the attachment block for the tackline.