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From: don@umd5.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.columbia
Subject: RE: Shuttle sonic booms
Message-ID: <815@umd5.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 14-Dec-85 13:23:31 EST
Article-I.D.: umd5.815
Posted: Sat Dec 14 13:23:31 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 17-Dec-85 03:48:47 EST
References: <600@riccb.UUCP> <1300014@uok.UUCP>
Organization: U of Md, CSC, College Park, Md
Lines: 29

> 
> I remember reading in one of my physics classes that there are always two
> shock cones, one from the nose and one from the back (but not the tail).
> Normally you don't hear both of them because at low mach speeds (relatively)
> the time delay between shocks is so short they seem like only one. However,
> the shuttle is moving so fast that there is a noticable delay, until of 
> course it has slowed to the slower speeds.
> 
> taylor culpepper          uokvax!uok!tcculpep
> univ. of oklahoma
> 

'cuse me if I sound nit-picky to you, but one can't HEAR a sonic boom
because by the very nature of the phenomena it is SUPERSONIC.

One does sense the window-rattling abrupt changes in air pressure, however.
If I'm not mistaken, the air pressure states go: ambient-low press.-ambient
as the shockwave "cones" pass by.

-- 
--==---==---==--
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"No, I mean, what happened to us ?"
"That has yet to be surmised."

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