Can a bullet create a sonic boom?
The answer is that any bullet (or other projectile) that travels over the speed of sound does make a sonic boom as it's fired - and continues to make a sonic boom all the way along it's trajectory until the bullet's speed is below the speed of sound.
Gunfire characteristics
A typical muzzle blast generates a shock wave with a sound pressure level (SPL) of 140 dB or louder. A whip-like “snap” or “crack” caused by the sonic boom that occurs as a projectile moves through the air at supersonic speeds.
THE AUTHOR POINTS OUT THAT VELOCITY IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR IN A BULLET'S ENERGY AND WOUNDING EFFECT, AND THAT SUPERSONIC BULLETS ARE THOSE WHICH TRAVEL AT A VELOCITY GREATER THAN THE SPEED OF SOUND, OR MORE THAN APPROXIMATELY 1100 FEET PER SECOND.
The trick is that you have to move the air, instead of moving the body. A sonic boom requires an object to have a supersonic speed with respect to the airstream. If you can't bring the object to the airstream, you can bring the airstream to the object! Supersonic wind tunnels would be the natural example of this.
The fastest bullets travel more than 2,600 feet per second. That's equivalent to over 1,800 miles per hour. To put that in perspective, it's amazing to realize that bullets travel over twice the speed of sound!
Almost every rifle, except some muzzle loaders, have a muzzle velocity well in excess of 1,116 fps, and are supersonic, at least for the initial ballistic flight. They do slow down rapidly. While faster than 1,116 fps they will create a sonic boom, but more like a single sharp crack.
The speed of sound is fast, but bullets move faster. In fact, bullets can move fast enough to break the sound barrier. Contrary to what the name might suggest, the sound barrier is not an actual wall or barrier. Rather, it is the hypothetical limit to the speed an object can travel before it exceeds the speed of sound.
Most modern firearm bullets are supersonic, with rifle projectiles often travelling at speeds approaching and in some cases well exceeding Mach 3.
On Earth, we have created some really fast objects. For instance, the speed of a bullet out of a gun can be as high as 4,200 kilometers per hour, which is three times the speed of sound. But it is not even the fastest thing.
Current rules prohibit commercial airplanes from flying at supersonic speeds over land because of the noise levels associated with sonic booms and the negative impacts to humans and animals.
Why is sonic boom illegal?
Fifty years ago, the federal government banned all civilian supersonic flights over land. The rule prohibits non-military aircraft from flying faster than sound so their resulting sonic booms won't startle the public below or concern them about potential property damage.
The good news is that in almost all instances in which sonic booms are normally heard, the sound or overpressure created—around one to two pounds—is too weak to cause physical injury to people. At two to five pounds of overpressure, some damage to structures may occur, according to NASA.
But bullets are many times smaller than aircraft, which we usually associate with booms. Therefore, the shock wave is much more compressed. And when shooting guns, you are much closer to the source. This results in a much more intense, higher frequency “crack” sound rather than a boom.
Speed of light—faster than a speeding bullet.
Yes, technically it is possible to drop a cartridge and have the bullet fire. It is completely dependent on the primer. It can take anywhere between 3–16lbs of pressure to set off the primer so it also is very dependent on the actual ammunition. Also remember that it might be possible but it isn't very likely.
The . 220 Swift is the fastest commercial cartridge in the world, with a published velocity of 1,422 m/s (4,665 ft/s) using a bullet of 1.9 grams (29 gr) and 2.7 grams (42 gr) of 3031 powder.
Sonic boom is an impulsive noise similar to thunder. It is caused by an object moving faster than sound -- about 750 miles per hour at sea level. An aircraft traveling through the atmosphere continuously produces air-pressure waves similar to the water waves caused by a ship's bow.
The width of the boom "carpet" beneath the aircraft is about one mile for each 1000 feet of altitude. An aircraft, for example, flying supersonic at 50,000 feet can produce a sonic boom cone about 50 miles wide. The sonic boom, however, will not be uniform.
In the 1950s and '60s, Americans filed some 40,000 claims against the Air Force, whose supersonic jets were making a ruckus over land. Then in 1973, the FAA banned overland supersonic commercial flights because of sonic booms—a prohibition that remains in effect today.
While ordinary bullets can travel about half a mile per second, that speed quickly slows to a complete stop when the bullet travels through denser materials like water.
Why do bullets not work underwater?
Ballistics: When guns are submerged underwater, the water quickly fills the barrel that when you fire the gun, the bullet will have to push all the water out from the barrel bearing all the weight of the water which may be heavier than the bullet. This will dramatically decrease the range of the bullet.
Bullets can go 2,600 mph (4,200 kmh), more than three times the speed of sound. The fastest aircraft is NASA's X3 jet plane, with a top speed of 7,000 mph (11,200 kph). That sounds impressive, but it's still only 0.001% the speed of light.
A 9mm bullet typically travels at a velocity of around 1,200 feet per second, which is equivalent to 853 miles per hour. That's faster than the speed of sound! It's no wonder why this type of ammunition is so popular for self-defense and target shooting.
How Fast Does a 50 cal Bullet Travel? A 50-cal bullet travels at around 2850 fps or 1943 mph. The 50 caliber BMG cartridge is a huge cartridge compared to most other common rifle cartridges. It is used in the famous Barrett 50 caliber sniper rifle and is one of the most powerful commercial rifle rounds available.
Answer and Explanation: The speed of light is Mach 874,030. This is because the speed of light in air is 874,030 times faster than the speed of sound in air. Sound travels are a speed of 1234 km/hr while light travels at 1,078,553,020 km/hr.
