NASA Snapped First-Ever Images of Interacting Supersonic Shock Waves

Two supersonic jet aircraft of the U.S. Air Force travelled so fast, – at speeds greater than the speed of sound -, and so close to one another that the shock waves generated from the jets began to combine… and the event was captured by NASA via an air-to-air schlieren photography technology.

merging supersonic shockwaves

First-ever snapshot of two supersonic shockwaves colliding in air (NASA)

The merging shock waves (pressure waves) were created by two T-38 supersonic airplanes flying about 9 meters from each other and at 3 meter difference in height.

The stunning images, which were captured by another plane flying at about 610 meter above the two fast-moving aircraft, are the first-ever photos of two supersonic shock waves interacting in the air.

And lack of communication getting viagra in australia can lead to mind stress. A mix of confirmed tablets can create you into a sex bomb in levitra without prescription case you’re definitely not. The factors leading to Infertility are ovulation problem, tubal causes, sperm causes, unexplained infertility, age related factors and some time it may also be genetic. cialis properien On the other hand, depression, stress, anxiety, buy viagra without consultation http://www.learningworksca.org/about/leadership/ feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, and worthlessness are removed as the perceptions and thoughts have been transformed. A plane traveling at subsonic speeds, pushes the air in front of it and generates sound waves. But when the plane moves faster than the speed of sound (767 mph or 1235 km/h) — it is practically faster than the waves it creates.

single supersonic shockwave t-38

Supersonic shockwave created by a single T-38 aircraft (Credit: NASA Photo)

Because air molecules can’t keep up with its speed, they are subjected to compression. This leads to a rapid rise in pressure in front of the aircraft, resulting in a new type of wave: supersonic shock wave. Shock waves are not seen by human eye, instead they can be heard as a thunder-like sound called a sonic boom.

NASA captured also a photo dubbed as a “knife-edge” shot of supersonic shock waves created by a single T-38 jet. Shock waves created by a single aircraft appear like straight lines emerging like a cone off the tip of the aircraft.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.