My OperaHow Fast Can We Go, Really?
Thursday, March 29, 2007 4:00:53 PM
The New Horizons space probe was in the news lately and is going a long way to check out Pluto. Then it will continue out to see the place where comets are born. This will be happening in about 8 years. That is how far away Pluto is at the speed New Horizons is traveling. As New Horizons passed Jupiter, it was going about 52,000 miles per hour. When it was launched from Earth it reached a record speed of 35,800 miles per hour.
So, how does this speedster compare to the other spacecraft speed records? Do you know what the fastest speed of any man made object is and where and when it occurred?
I'll give you a clue. Why is the New horizons space probe going faster now than when it was launched? Gravity! Jupiter's gravity has been pulling the New Horizons space probe faster and faster towards Jupiter. So, Jupiter has the most gravity of any planet in the Solar System, but what has more gravity than all the planets put together?
So, how does this speedster compare to the other spacecraft speed records? Do you know what the fastest speed of any man made object is and where and when it occurred?
I'll give you a clue. Why is the New horizons space probe going faster now than when it was launched? Gravity! Jupiter's gravity has been pulling the New Horizons space probe faster and faster towards Jupiter. So, Jupiter has the most gravity of any planet in the Solar System, but what has more gravity than all the planets put together?
Of course! The Sun is far more massive than the planets. When space probes were launched who's missions were to study the Sun, its gravity pulled on them with a huge force. They were called the Helios space probes, and they hold - thanks to the Sun's gravity - the absolute speed records of any man made object. New Horizons passed Jupiter at over 50,000 miles per hour. But the Helios probes reached speeds of 150,000 miles per hour!! Woo Hooo!
Three times as fast as New Horizons!
It is unbelievable... 150,000 Miles per hour is over 40 miles per second. Not even Superman can reach that speed! Can he? Maybe I better read up on that...
Here is a chart of high speed spacecraft from www.aerospaceweb.org:
Suppose we used the sun to accelerate a space ship to 300,000 miles per hour - twice the fastest speed so far reached - in order to travel to the nearest star... How long would the journey take?
You must be 
Kay FourKayFour # Sunday, April 1, 2007 12:53:38 PM
Jonchinajon # Monday, April 9, 2007 5:47:59 AM
Nice to hear from you again! You don't need to do the math!
-=J=-
Eliane a/k/a Ellymomable # Tuesday, May 1, 2007 1:47:40 AM
Jonchinajon # Tuesday, May 1, 2007 5:20:39 AM
Be careful when you zoom-zoom!
;-)
rishiearth bound misfit # Sunday, August 5, 2007 12:54:19 PM
now i have someone from whom i can take a few lessons...
Jonchinajon # Sunday, August 5, 2007 1:53:34 PM
I am more of an observer and commentator than teacher. What are you interested in?
Thanks for the visit.
:-D
rishiearth bound misfit # Sunday, August 5, 2007 1:58:07 PM
i am interested in anything and everything about the universe, the space and most of all, the theory of everything, as prof stephen hawking calls it in "brief history of time"...
and the visit was a pleasure for me...
btw you can call me rishi...