The BLOODHOUND Project

I have to think these guys are crazy by any normal measure. But at the same time, I'm kind of jealous too.

The BLOODHOUND Project

Of course, the craziest one is Andy Green, but you wouldn't think it to look at him. He seems to think that flying a jet fighter in wartime is the greatest, so driving a car at 1000mph is presumably just a Sunday afternoon cruise.

Current land speed record, with tires, is 775 mph. Much faster than that and tires fly apart, heating of the air becomes a major factor, aerodynamics make it impossible to stay on the ground, and of course the power requirements are massive.

Trying for 1kmph will require some radical rethinking.

I believe the car which holds the current land speed record had solid aluminum wheels - no rubber tires. Of course, at those speeds, even metal wheels can fly apart if not properly constructed and balanced.

Race car aerodynamics to prevent flying away have been around for quite some time. The down pressure exerted by modern Formula 1 and Indy cars is greater than the weight of the car. Theoretically and mathematically, the cars should be able to drive upside down at high speed. Lift is not a problem at high speed - even 1,000 mph - control is the big problem.

As a young man, I had - as they say - a need for speed. 100+ mph on a motorcycle, 150 mph on public roads, and 200 mph on the track. But 1,000 mph is just fucking insane.

Yep.

Andy Green and this team are the current record-holders, and the first to drive a "car" through the sound barrier. So it wouldn't be wise to assume that 1000mph is impossible, or that they aren't capable of achieving it. But my mind still boggles.

Yep.

I think it's stupid.
It's a waste of science, resources, and time.
And it's not going to do much to "inspire the next generation". I think some people have way too much time on their hands and want to make their hobby sound good enough that they don't feel like idiots for spending such resources on a fast car as opposed to something we actually need.

The fastest bullet trains are what, 240 Mph? It's hard to think of an application for the technology to go 4x faster.

NoCoPilot wrote:

The fastest bullet trains are what, 240 Mph?  It's hard to think of an application for the technology to go 4x faster.

Exactly. It just seems like something that isn't realistic for everyday life. IDK maybe I'm wrong, they do have to invent a lot to get there, much like NASA had to do with the space flights. We got a lot of tech out of that. But then that hadn't been done before. This sort of has, they aren't doing much new but just trying to beat another's record. It just seems silly.