Well imagine this flying from Tampa to China Australia or anywhere else in less than an hour flight engineers at the University of Central Florida are figuring out the secret to Safe Hypersonic travel and Fox 13's Craig Patrick explains their Discovery in tonight's edition of breakthroughs in science anasa developed the x59 to break.
The speed barrier without emitting the deafening supersonic boom on people below and right now commercial airlines are producing a new generation of SuperSonic Jets to cut passenger flight times in half but while that's all drawing a great deal of excitement as it should these students at the University of Central Florida have already taken a.
Much greater leap 10 minutes by air from Tampa to California yes now they've not yet built such a jet but they did figure out how to stabilize a Hypersonic engine in this lab that's Hypersonic as opposed to supersonic NASA's x59 supersonic aircraft is designed to fly 925 mph ucf's Hypersonic design could lead up to air travel 14 times faster up to 13,000.
Mph the first reaction was actually denial so from uh not believing it's actually real now for context we powered engines through internal combustion for more than 200 years when you have like a like a fuel injector on a car it sprays Mist into your combuster the fuel Mist Burns which releases energy which drives motion and so we currently ride or fly.
On comparatively slow controlled reactions like a burning candle flame but with hypersonic engines instead of a slow burn they set off a chain of powerful explosions which drives much more motion with much less fuel that controlled explosion is highly efficient in releasing that energy compared to your typical candle flame which you fly.
On today uh that is not an efficient process but while Hypersonic engines are far more powerful and efficient they can also be unstable the problem with the detonation process is that it's unsteady and very hard to control and that's where Dr Kareem ahed and his students broke new ground they developed and tested the world's first Hypersonic.
Engine that can stabilize the detonation so what were you thinking holy smoke we did it yes we were able to stabilize it repeatably it was exciting that now we've got the world first stabilized oblique dation wave here's their first experiment that Drew attention around the world it's basically a tube split into three parts the first part ignites.
An injection of hydrogen and oxygen and the second part injects more hydrogen and as the burst shoots into the third section it hits this 30° ramp and that ramp holds and stabilizes the shock wave reaction so you get thrust from the explosion and a shock wave to keep the explosion going until they cut off the fuel and this is how that burst of.
Thrust looks in the lab Rachel hovik is a doctoral student from Tampa here's how she explains what we just witnessed to her family and friends most of the time I just say I study fire and how to make fire happen faster uh and then if fire can happen faster then we can get places faster.
This chart shows how they sustain the detonation wave for 3 seconds before they cut off the fuel the next steps are to keep repeating the experiment and to keep expanding it can we predict Its Behavior and achieve it every time reliably once you're at that phase you're ready for that technology transition they've already built a.
Second much longer tube I've been spending every single day here at the lab since I started my PhD designing this from the ground up they are not setting off any Sonic booms and don't plan to but it's still very loud and jars people who aren't used to it 3 2 one the sound you hear on television.
Does not reflect how it sounds in person I I am very used to it uh we still regularly Shock passers by with that kind of a shot how does this whole tube not shoot back um lots of cinder blocks and a giant metal claw that holds it to the the foundation and while they're still testing the detonation wave engine they've already.
Conceived how it will look and work in Flight in concept A more traditional aircraft will take off and carry the Hypersonic craft into the air and then let it go then a rocket booster will accelerate it to supersonic speed and then they'll fire up the Hypersonic chamber shock waves will ignite the fuel and that slope design that 30° ramp.
Built into the chamber will stabilize the detonation wave maintain Hypersonic speed until it's time to land from one continent to another in a matter of minutes when will you be able to have commercial jets that can do this here on Earth Maybe by 2050 probably that technology would be realized and beyond that it could shoot.
Future astronauts into space and speed up travel to the Moon Mars and who knows where Craig Patrick Fox 13 News
If it elevate extra liquid or jelly like substance this would possibly perhaps final longer
frightening
I’m amazed a local news area would put an intensive memoir on a scientific near as a change of some sensationalist political area or edifying fear. Kudos to producing news.