Stagnation pressure

In fluid dynamics, stagnation pressure, also referred to as total pressure, is what the pressure would be if all the kinetic energy of the fluid were to be converted into pressure in a reversable manner.^{: § 3.2}; it is defined as the sum of the free-stream static pressure and the free-stream dynamic pressure.

The Bernoulli equation applicable to incompressible flow shows that the stagnation pressure is equal to the dynamic pressure and static pressure combined.^{: § 3.5} In compressible flows, stagnation pressure is also equal to total pressure as well, provided that the fluid entering the stagnation point is brought to rest isentropically.^{: § 3.12}

Stagnation pressure is sometimes referred to as pitot pressure because the two pressures are equal.