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It was in the X-1 that Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier in level flight on 14 October 1947, flying at an altitude of 45,000 ft (13.7 km). George Welch made a plausible but officially unverified claim to have broken the sound barrier on 1 October 1947, while flying an XP-86 Sabre. He also claimed to have repeated ...
For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately 343.2 m/s (1,126 ft/s; 768 mph; 667.1 kn; 1,236 km/h). Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5) are often referred to as hypersonic.
At 0 °C (32 °F), the speed of sound in dry air (sea level 14.7 psi) is about 331 m/s (1,086 ft/s; 1,192 km/h; 740 mph; 643 kn). [1] The speed of sound in an ideal gas depends only on its temperature and composition. The speed has a weak dependence on frequency and pressure in dry air, deviating slightly from ideal behavior.
Sonic booms are heard on the ground when airplanes fly faster than the speed of sound — typically about 760 mph (1,223 kph) near sea level but varying depending on temperature, altitude and other conditions, according to the Congressional Research Service.
After getting to altitude, Brandenburg opened up the test plane's throttles, accelerating to Mach 1.1, or about 845 mph (1,360 kph) -- faster than the speed at which sound travels.
The sound barrier was first broken on Oct. 14, 1947, according to the U.S. Air Force. That's when Capt. Chuck Yeager and the Bell X-1 rocket-propelled aircraft broke the sound barrier.
Under standard atmospheric conditions, air temperature decreases with increased altitude. For example, when the sea-level temperature is 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 °C), the temperature at 30,000 feet (9,100 m) drops to minus 49 degrees Fahrenheit (−45 °C). This temperature gradient helps bend the sound waves upward.
At a speed of about 767 miles per hour, depending on temperature and humidity, a moving object will break the sound barrier. It was not until World War II, when aircraft started to reach the ...