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When a shock wave forms, the local air pressure increases and then spreads out sideways. Because of this amplification effect, a shock wave can be very intense, more like an explosion when heard at a distance (not coincidentally, since explosions create shock waves). Analogous phenomena are known outside fluid mechanics.
Shock waves are common in astrophysical environments. [1]Because of the low ambient density, most astronomical shocks are collisionless.This means that the shocks are not formed by two-body Coulomb collisions, since the mean free path for these collisions is too large, often exceeding the size of the system.
An oblique shock wave is a shock wave that, unlike a normal shock, is inclined with respect to the direction of incoming air. It occurs when a supersonic flow encounters a corner that effectively turns the flow into itself and compresses. [1] The upstream streamlines are uniformly deflected after the shock
The bright flash of the shockwave, or as astronomers call it the "shock breakout," pushes outward as the distant body turns from star to supernova.
A sonic boom produced by an aircraft moving at M=2.92, calculated from the cone angle of 20 degrees. Observers hear nothing until the shock wave, on the edges of the cone, crosses their location. Mach cone angle NASA data showing N-wave signature. [1] Conical shockwave with its hyperbola-shaped ground contact zone in yellow
For example, explosions near or within hard solid surfaces become amplified two to nine times due to shock wave reflection. As a result, individuals between the blast and a building generally suffer two to three times the degree of injury compared to those in open spaces.
Undercompressive shock wave; V. Vapor cone This page was last edited on 8 January 2015, at 10:06 (UTC). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution ...
The defining criterion of a shock wave is that the bulk velocity of the plasma drops from "supersonic" to "subsonic", where the speed of sound c s is defined by = / where is the ratio of specific heats, is the pressure, and is the density of the plasma.