Blockland Forums > Suggestions & Requests
plane and boat ideas
Xerces:
Currently, scramjet technology is not used by commercial airlines, due to:
A: Temperature. The air friction generated on the fuselage of the plane would generate more than enough heat to melt its aluminum skin.
B: Airflow. The need for supersonic air pressure flow through the scramjet engine, to compress/ignite the fuel and produce the controlled explosion of thrust that propels the vehicle forward.
C: Aerodynamics. A standard passenger airliner is not aerodynamic enough, and therefore the air friction would rip it apart at speeds of mach 6.
D: Gravitational forces. The g-forces exerted on the passengers would be fatal without a proper pressure suit
E: Materials. The materials used to survive and maintain speeds of mach 4-6 and the conditions stated above often include Titanium, ceramic composites, and carbon composites. These are often very hard to produce or acquire.
Basically, that plane was a silly version of a true scramjet.
The X-43A is one of Nasa's latest scramjets. If you watch the video, compare the size of the scramjet (the small, dark-gray, sleek vehicle mounted on the front of the rocket (which helps it with 'B' above) to the B-52 and then the launch rocket.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O1jsiSyq04
-Xerces