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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.
Supersonic speed doesn’t begin at a fixed point, as temperature, humidity and air pressure all affect how fast an aircraft must go to qualify. According to Boom, a jet must reach around 770 mph ...
c is the speed of sound in the medium, which in air varies with the square root of the thermodynamic temperature. By definition, at Mach 1, the local flow velocity u is equal to the speed of sound. At Mach 0.65, u is 65% of the speed of sound (subsonic), and, at Mach 1.35, u is 35% faster than the
Speed of sound. The speed of sound is the distance travelled per unit of time by a sound wave as it propagates through an elastic medium. More simply, the speed of sound is how fast vibrations travel. At 20 °C (68 °F), the speed of sound in air is about 343 m/s (1,125 ft/s; 1,235 km/h; 767 mph; 667 kn), or 1 km in 2.91 s or one mile in 4.69 s.
The supersonic speed range is that range of speeds within which all of the airflow over an aircraft is supersonic (more than Mach 1). But airflow meeting the leading edges is initially decelerated, so the free stream speed must be slightly greater than Mach 1 to ensure that all of the flow over the aircraft is supersonic.
A supersonic transport (SST) is a civil aircraft designed to transport passengers at speeds greater than the speed of sound. The only supersonic civilian aircraft to see service were the Soviet produced Tupolev Tu-144 which first flew in 1968 and last transported passengers in 1978, with NASA retiring it from any use in 1997; and the Franco ...
XS-1 flight number 50 is the first one where the X-1 recorded supersonic flight, with a maximum speed of Mach 1.06 (361 m/s, 1,299 km/h, 807.2 mph). As a result of the X-1's initial supersonic flight, the National Aeronautics Association voted its 1947 Collier Trophy to be shared by the three main participants in the program.
Its inaugural flight — 60 years ago in September 1964 — kicked off a golden era for supersonic aircraft. The plane would later achieve a speed of just over 2,000 miles per hour, nearly 50% ...