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Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound (Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately 343.2 m/s (1,126 ft/s; 768 mph; 667.1 kn; 1,236 km/h). Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5) are often referred to as hypersonic.
For example, as the Earth's rotational velocity is 465 m/s at the equator, a rocket launched tangentially from the Earth's equator to the east requires an initial velocity of about 10.735 km/s relative to the moving surface at the point of launch to escape whereas a rocket launched tangentially from the Earth's equator to the west requires an ...
When in space, the purpose of a propulsion system is to change the velocity, or v, of a spacecraft. [ 6 ] In-space propulsion begins where the upper stage of the launch vehicle leaves off, performing the functions of primary propulsion, reaction control, station keeping, precision pointing, and orbital maneuvering.
An Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) carried by a B-52 bomber. Scramjet-powered hypersonic cruise missile. A hypersonic weapon is a weapon capable of travelling at hypersonic speed, defined as between 5 and 25 times the speed of sound or about 1 to 5 miles per second (1.6 to 8.0 km/s). [ 1 ]
Shock diamonds are the bright areas seen in the exhaust of this statically mounted Pratt & Whitney J58 engine on full afterburner.. Shock diamonds (also known as Mach diamonds or thrust diamonds) are a formation of standing wave patterns that appear in the supersonic exhaust plume of an aerospace propulsion system, such as a supersonic jet engine, rocket, ramjet, or scramjet, when it is ...
Primary user. NASA. The Lockheed Martin X-59 Quesst ("Quiet SuperSonic Technology"), sometimes styled QueSST, is an American experimental supersonic aircraft under development by Skunk Works for NASA 's Low- Boom Flight Demonstrator project. [ 1 ] Preliminary design started in February 2016, with the X-59 planned to begin flight testing in 2021.
The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the 1960s, crossing the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. The X-15's highest speed, 4,520 miles per hour (7,274 km/h; 2,021 m/s), [ 1 ] was achieved on 3 October 1967, [ 2 ] when William J. Knight flew at Mach 6.7 at an altitude of 102,100 feet ...
The first manufactured object to achieve hypersonic flight was the two-stage Bumper rocket, consisting of a WAC Corporal second stage set on top of a V-2 first stage. In February 1949, at White Sands, the rocket reached a speed of 8,290 km/h (5,150 mph), or about Mach 6.7. [1]