Sonic booms – Concorde exempt?

Sonic booms – Concorde exempt?

Author
Discussion

alanw89

459 posts

216 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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TEKNOPUG

19,055 posts

207 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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This was what effectively destroyed Concordes commercail viability. Once everyone had refused it permission to cross their air-space due to the booms, the only viable route left was trans-atlantic.

Does beg the question how did the SR71 get away with it? Both domestic training flights and also during ops?


daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?

durbster

10,340 posts

224 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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When they first broke the sound barrier, did they know it would boom?

It'd be bloody terrifying if not biggrin

TEKNOPUG

19,055 posts

207 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
daz3210 said:
I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?
No but I'd expect it to be easy to track

Hooli

32,278 posts

202 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
TEKNOPUG said:
daz3210 said:
I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?
No but I'd expect it to be easy to track
Worked tracking the Firefox up the Urals when Clint felt the need, the need for speed hehe

Eric Mc

122,332 posts

267 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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durbster said:
When they first broke the sound barrier, did they know it would boom?

It'd be bloody terrifying if not biggrin
Yes.

Natural items have been breaking the sound barrier since time began. People may not have understood what was happeneing of course when they heard the bangs.
Ernst Mach solidified the science of transonic and supersonic effects in the 19th century (which is why we have Mach Numbers). Cannonballs, artillery shells and rifle bullets were already man made supersonic objects decades before Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947.
The German V2 rocket was actually HYPERSONIC (4,000 mph plus) - and it first flew in 1942, five years before Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1.

Dr Jekyll

23,820 posts

263 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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Nobby Diesel said:
I once flew to Washington DC on the Concorde and it was a totally unique experience.
Hearing the BOOM,
Huh?

daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
TEKNOPUG said:
daz3210 said:
I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?
No but I'd expect it to be easy to track
Would it though?

I thought the sonic boom came AFTER the object that created it. Thus you only know where it has been.


2fast748

1,109 posts

197 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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Didn't the yanks change the rules to allow only military aircraft to go supersonic over land to keep Concorde out?

Cyder

7,074 posts

222 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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I grew up in Devon as well and the boom used to get the pheasants quite upset every day. hehe

It was strange the day after they retired from service not hearing the boom. frown

Paul Dishman

4,747 posts

239 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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oilydan said:
SWH said:
Grew up in the middle of Devon and used to hear Concorde every evening going supersonic over the Bristol Channel - made the front room windows rattle and the massive flat barn roof shake a tiny bit - Boom, b-b-boom is probably the best description, great stuff smile
I grew up in North Cornwall and used to see the con-trails and hear the Boom, B-B-Boom every evening at around 6pm.

Thanks for the nostalgia trip!!
I remember that from living in Tintagel in the 70's. Used to send the dog mad at first, but even she got used to it happening each evening

Hugo a Gogo

23,378 posts

235 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
daz3210 said:
TEKNOPUG said:
daz3210 said:
I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?
No but I'd expect it to be easy to track
Would it though?

I thought the sonic boom came AFTER the object that created it. Thus you only know where it has been.
yes, surely the boom is travelling AT the speed of sound, and SR71 is going mach 2 point whatever

Yertis

18,164 posts

268 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
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JonnyFive said:
I'd love this, would be excellent biggrin

I remember reading somewhere it'd fly normally out from London until Bristol, then open the engines up.
Watching in Bristol the change in speed was actually perceptible, it would appear at 'normal' speed from the east and be discernibly faster as it disappeared over the western horizon. Used to love watching it from my allotment.

Growing up, the sonic boom was audible in south Dorset too, if the weather conditions were right.

Mave

8,209 posts

217 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
Nobby Diesel said:
I once flew to Washington DC on the Concorde and it was a totally unique experience.
Hearing the BOOM, feeling the thud in the middle of your back and watching the Mach meter at the front of the cabin was incredible.
What I remember most vividly though, was the view out of the window.
That's the boom of the reheat lighting up though, right, not the sonic boom? You shouldn't hear the sonic boom as a passenger because you're
travelling with the pressure wave.

Mave

8,209 posts

217 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
daz3210 said:
TEKNOPUG said:
daz3210 said:
I'm gessing during OP's permission isn't a worry. If they are in enemy territory do you think they are there with permission?
No but I'd expect it to be easy to track
Would it though?

I thought the sonic boom came AFTER the object that created it. Thus you only know where it has been.
Still useful though, isn't it? If you can track where it's been, you can work out where it's going; turning circles are quite large at Mach 2+!!

Eric Mc

122,332 posts

267 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
I used to listen to the position reoports on a Short Wave radio. Concorde called up its reports twice as quickly as the subsonic airliners.

sherbert90

1,908 posts

154 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
Eric Mc said:
durbster said:
When they first broke the sound barrier, did they know it would boom?

It'd be bloody terrifying if not biggrin
Yes.

Natural items have been breaking the sound barrier since time began. People may not have understood what was happeneing of course when they heard the bangs.
Ernst Mach solidified the science of transonic and supersonic effects in the 19th century (which is why we have Mach Numbers). Cannonballs, artillery shells and rifle bullets were already man made supersonic objects decades before Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947.
The German V2 rocket was actually HYPERSONIC (4,000 mph plus) - and it first flew in 1942, five years before Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1.
Wasn't the first man made object to break the sound barrier a whip?

davepen

1,460 posts

272 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
durbster said:
When they first broke the sound barrier, did they know it would boom?

It'd be bloody terrifying if not biggrin
I think that was the least of their problems, I'm sure there is an old B&W film, based on the de Haviland tests - lots of "cannot hold it" and trips to cemetery. Fixed by the "flying wing" concept.

Quick look on wiki - it was based on Geoffory de Haviland jr and the film was called The Sound Barrier, obviously enough. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sound_Barrier

It was also a fashion to force a boom at the Farnborough Airshow - until one crashed in 1952.
Also used to get booms in Southern Germany in the 1980's, possibly USAF.

Nobby Diesel

2,058 posts

253 months

Wednesday 14th March 2012
quotequote all
Mave said:
That's the boom of the reheat lighting up though, right, not the sonic boom? You shouldn't hear the sonic boom as a passenger because you're
travelling with the pressure wave.
Yes, as a passenger, I guess you are effectively in front of the sound.
I was 10 - pressure waves, sonic boom, noises..........who cares? It was exciting as hell.