“The crack of a whip
comes from a loop traveling along the whip, gaining speed until it reaches the speed of sound and creates a sonic boom
,” Goriely says. He notes that even though some parts of the whip travel at greater speeds, “it is the loop itself that generates the sonic boom.”
Does a whip really break the sound barrier?
The tip of a bullwhip is thought to be the first human-made object to break the
sound barrier
, resulting in the telltale “crack” of the whip. This “crack” sound is actually a small sonic boom. To break the sound barrier, you (or your bullwhip) must exceed about 770 mph at sea level.
Do whips break the sound barrier?
That's a sonic boom, the shockwave created when
the tip of the whip breaks the sound barrier
. … It turns out that the cracking noise is actually created by a loop traveling along the whip, picking up speed. And when it reaches the speed of sound, it creates a sonic boom.
How fast does a whip travel mph?
Given that professional baseball players routinely throw baseballs at over 90 miles per hour,
25 miles per hour
is a reasonable assumption for how fast a whip can be thrown, even by a couch potato. This is the kinetic energy in the moving part of the whip.
What things break the sound barrier?
Anything exceeding the speed of sound creates a “sonic boom”, not just airplanes.
An airplane, a bullet, or the tip of a bullwhip
can create this effect; they all produce a crack.
Why is it illegal to break the sound barrier?
It's against the law. Within the United States, it is illegal to break the sound barrier. … When you
pass Mach 1
, the plane travels faster than the waves itself and that move across the so-called sound barrier produces a large sound, which is the sonic boom.
Can a pilot hear his sonic boom?
If you're WONDERing about how pilots handle sonic booms,
they actually don't hear them
. They can see the pressure waves around the plane, but people on board the airplane can't hear the sonic boom. Like the wake of a ship, the boom carpet unrolls behind the airplane.
Why are sonic booms illegal?
Sonic booms due to large supersonic aircraft can be particularly loud and startling, tend to awaken people, and may cause minor damage to some structures. They led to
prohibition of routine supersonic flight over land
.
Does a whip crack?
“The crack of a whip
comes from a loop traveling along the whip, gaining speed until it reaches the speed of sound and creates a sonic boom
,” Goriely says. He notes that even though some parts of the whip travel at greater speeds, “it is the loop itself that generates the sonic boom.”
How are whips so fast?
As the whip is swung, the loop travels outward toward the thinner, lighter tip. The
loop travels progressively faster the closer it gets to the tip
, because the energy from the heavier part of the whip is carried along into the lighter, thinner part.
Has a car broken the sound barrier?
Thrust SSC
holds the world land speed record, set on 15 October 1997, and driven by Andy Green, when it achieved a speed of 1,228 km/h (763 mph) and became the first land vehicle to officially break the sound barrier.
Has a 747 ever broken the sound barrier?
As it shot across the Atlantic, the Boeing 747-400 jet reached a top ground speed of 825 mph. However,
the jet did not actually break the sound barrier
, because that is measured by its airspeed, or the speed of the plane relative to the air through which it is traveling.
Can a human break the sound barrier?
The Austrian parachutist known as “
Fearless Felix
” reached 843.6 mph, according to the official numbers released Monday. That's equivalent to Mach 1.25, or 1.25 times the speed of sound. … Either way, he became the first human to break the sound barrier with only his body.
Who broke Mach 4?
| Chuck Yeager | Service/branch United States Army United States Air Force | Years of service 1941–1947 (Army) 1947–1975 (Air Force) | Rank Brigadier general | Battles/wars World War II Korean War Vietnam War |
|---|
Can a sonic boom hurt you?
Sonic booms produced by aircraft flying supersonic at altitudes of less than 100 feet, creating between 20 and 144 pounds overpressure, have been experienced by
humans without injury
. Damage to eardrums can be expected when overpres- sures reach 720 pounds.
Has a propeller plane broke the sound barrier?
Propeller
planes can probably not break the sound barrier
since the propeller, for the airplane to go faster than the speed of sound, must go even faster. This will inevitably cause shock waves powerful enough to even break the propeller.
