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The Mach number (M or Ma), often only Mach, (/ m ɑː k /; German:) is a dimensionless quantity in fluid dynamics representing the ratio of flow velocity past a boundary to the local speed of sound. [1] [2] It is named after the Austrian physicist and philosopher Ernst Mach. =, where: M is the local Mach number,
Dimensionless numbers (or characteristic numbers) have an important role in analyzing the behavior of fluids and their flow as well as in other transport phenomena. [1] They include the Reynolds and the Mach numbers, which describe as ratios the relative magnitude of fluid and physical system characteristics, such as density, viscosity, speed of sound, and flow speed.
For homogeneous fluids, the physical point at which the choking occurs for adiabatic conditions is when the exit plane velocity is at sonic conditions; i.e., at a Mach number of 1. [1] [2] [3] At choked flow, the mass flow rate can be increased only by increasing the upstream density of the substance.
The Buckingham pi theorem then leads to a third dimensionless group, the ratio of the relative velocity to the speed of sound, which is known as the Mach number. Consequently when a body is moving relative to a gas, the drag coefficient varies with the Mach number and the Reynolds number.
C L is a function of the angle of the body to the flow, its Reynolds number and its Mach number. The section lift coefficient c l refers to the dynamic lift characteristics of a two-dimensional foil section, with the reference area replaced by the foil chord. [1] [2]
The dashed lines show the limiting value as Mach number tends to infinity. In aerodynamics , the Prandtl–Meyer function describes the angle through which a flow turns isentropically from sonic velocity (M=1) to a Mach (M) number greater than 1 .
Mach number, a useful quantity in aerodynamics, is the ratio of air speed to the local speed of sound. At altitude, for reasons explained, Mach number is a function of temperature. Aircraft flight instruments, however, operate using pressure differential to compute Mach number, not temperature. The assumption is that a particular pressure ...
With a given upstream Mach number, the post-shock Mach number can be calculated along with the pressure, density, temperature, and stagnation pressure ratios. Such tables are useful since the equations used to calculate the properties after a normal shock are cumbersome.