[AR] Re: Hypersonics have finally arrived
- From: Henry Spencer <hspencer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: Arocket List <arocket@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2020 13:52:25 -0400 (EDT)
On Wed, 14 Oct 2020, roxanna Mason wrote:
> Don't forget that the first hypersonic weapon was tested in 1942, and
> several thousand were made and fired in 1944-45.
If you mean the V-2, that's in ballistic free fall not sustained and
controled flight, a whole different animal. Right?
A somewhat different animal -- in most ways, a better one. Not least in
being much cheaper and needing rather less exotic technology.
If you insist that something with aerodynamic lift just has to be better
(and never mind all those unpleasant numbers suggesting that ballistic
flight is generally superior at such speeds), don't forget that von
Braun's crew did fly a couple of winged V-2s, the second of which made a
successful transition to hypersonic gliding flight. (Didn't last long
thereafter, but that was hardly a surprise -- wooden wings at Mach 5!!
Just a proof of principle.)
Henry
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