Tuesday 24th November 2009

Bloodhound SSC Enters Build Phase

Supersonic design finalised as team moves into the doghouse

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The Bloodhound SSC land speed record attempt is announcing major milestones today, including the finalisation of the car's design, a new HQ for the project, and the news that the record runs will all take place in South Africa.

According to the latest press release, Bloodhound SSC (Super Sonic Car) has gone through ten design evolutions since the project started. The original plan had been to position a small 200kg rocket above the heavier 1,000kg EJ200 Eurofighter Typhoon jet engine and the car was designed accordingly.

As the project developed it became clear that more thrust was required to overcome the aerodynamic drag, the team says. This culminated in a hybrid rocket weighing 400kg but the extra thrust also created a fresh challenge: The rocket firing would violently pitch the car nose-down, destabilising the whole vehicle. The engineering team was thus forced into a re-design which saw the jet engine repositioned over the rocket.

According to the team, Bloodhound SSC will feature the largest hybrid rocket ever designed in the UK. It weighs 400kg, is 45cm in diameter, and at 4.25m is the same length as an F1 car. The rocket is designed to produce 27,500lbs of thrust. Together with 20,000lbs from the EJ200 jet engine, this will give the car the equivalent of 135,000hp, or the power of 180 F1 cars.

The Bloodhound's other features include a cockpit designed by its driver Wing Commander Andy Green, based on his experience flying fighter jets and on the cockpit of his previous World Land Speed Record car Thrust SSC. Lockheed Martin UK has been developing 90cms diameter aluminium wheels design to ensure they can withstand forces of 50,000 radial g at the rim and support a 6.5 tonne car travelling at 1,050mph.

The Bloodhound SSC team has also announced its runs will take place in the Hakskeen Pan desert, in the Northern Cape province of South Africa - where the regional government has promised to clear a 12 mile track as part of its own plans to develop a world-class adventure sports location.

Back in Blighty, the Bloodhound project has a new HQ in Bristol's docklands, next door to the SS Great Britain. Construction of the car will now begin at the new Bloodhound Technical Centre, or 'the doghouse' as it has been informally named.

You'll also be able to see the Bloodhound SSC at the PistonHeads show on 14-17 January.

www.bloodhoundssc.com

 

[AndySA]

This looks stunning, and glad us saffas can assist in a small way

[Ray Luxury-Yacht]

Day to day life can be so dull at times, but HOW EXCITING IS THIS?!! Cars with rockets that do 1,000 mph. Great stuff

[Papa Hotel]

Ray Luxury-Yacht said:

Day to day life can be so dull at times, but HOW EXCITING IS THIS?!! Cars with rockets that do 1,000 mph. Great stuff

Brings out the inner 6 year old, absolutely crazy numbers there. The power of 180 F1 cars, wheels that have to withstand 90,000G. It's a nice little engineering project for someone. Good luck chaps!

[bob1179]

Fantastic project! I wish the team well and I hope that they succeed!!

Slightly O/T, the PH'O'Meter thing has just told me I have rated this as a five, I didn't even touch the bloody thing. It is definitely a ten. I have no idea why it's done this and I am now disgruntled...

[mister.t]

Now that is cool

[CypherP]

It looks bloody impressive. I'd love to drive/pilot/fly that thing. Just the power output alone is unbelievable!

[pistonlager]

Insane!
Will it have an ejector seat or just airbags for safety.
If the pilot gets the willies at the last minute, I'll drive it!

[TheArchitect]

Recession pah! this is fantastic, I hope it gets the press coverage it deserves! now i really need to get over to see Thrust SSC before this happens.

[pacman1]

CypherP said:

... I'd love to drive/pilot/fly that thing. Just the power output alone is unbelievable!

Sod that! The last one looked scary enough.
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr0KdxhYgfY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYxN6koH9v8

[Erich Stahler]

Ray Luxury-Yacht said:

Day to day life can be so dull at times, but HOW EXCITING IS THIS?!! Cars with rockets that do 1,000 mph. Great stuff

Couldn't agree more, in these miserable days of global recession and climate change scare mongering this is just what's needed to warm the cockles of petrolheads heart!

Edited by Erich Stahler on Tuesday 24th November 09:59

[Mars]

pistonlager said:

Insane!
Will it have an ejector seat or just airbags for safety.
If the pilot gets the willies at the last minute, I'll drive it!

Not sure I'd want to eject into the mouth of that jet.

The whole LSR-thing is "the right stuff" for normal people. I'll never be an astronaut but I'm only a lottery-win away from being able to get involved in this kind of activity.

Can't wait to see it develop.

[MarvinManUK]

Top stuff.

[Erich Stahler]

Mars said:

pistonlager said:

Insane!
Will it have an ejector seat or just airbags for safety.
If the pilot gets the willies at the last minute, I'll drive it!

Not sure I'd want to eject into the mouth of that jet.

The whole LSR-thing is "the right stuff" for normal people. I'll never be an astronaut but I'm only a lottery-win away from being able to get involved in this kind of activity.

Can't wait to see it develop.

I think only a (very) substantial lottery win would get you past the drawing board stage if you were going to worry the Noble and Green team!

[Vipers]

Don't let the hamster near it?

[pacman1]

[zakelwe]

Getting the finance has always been the worst thing in the past, but Richard Noble has such a track record that hopefully it will come easier this time.

I loved his expression "For Britain and the hell of it", love the spirit and love the fact that Britain is continuing it's tradition of breaking land speed records for cars. We've had it now for almost 30 years.

If I was American I would be screaming "AWESOME" but I'm not so I'll go and simply put a cup of tea on and give a restrained nod of the head and mutter "good lads".

Andy

[RobM77]

I wish them the best of luck! I went to a fascinating talk by Richard Noble last Thursday on this project. He's an excellent speaker and I'd recommend joining to supporters club to be kept up to date with details and attend talks etc.

[Boggy]

Good luck guys

Boggy

[scubadude]

Gotta love their shear audacity to have a crack at 1000mph!

Also respect to the MOD for "loaning" (Will it be worth taking back full of desert sand?) them a Eurofighter engine... very impressed that "only" weighs 1000kg as well!

Reading on the Bloodhound website it sounds like the Exciting bit will be when Andy Green lights the rocket at 300mph! Not to mention going through the measure mile in less than 4 seconds!
In fact the whole website is full of stupidily frightening numbers.

[Vipers]

RobM77 said:

I wish them the best of luck!

Indeed, +1