
Bloodhound's 461-mph speed is big but team eyes bigger record ahead - lelf
https://techxplore.com/news/2019-11-bloodhound-mph-big-team-eyes.html
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mhandley
They managed 491 mph this morning, but again some minor damage:
[https://twitter.com/Bloodhound_LSR/status/119162873835993907...](https://twitter.com/Bloodhound_LSR/status/1191628738359939072)

This year's campaign is not trying to set any records, but just prove out much
of the technology using just the jet engine. Next year, all being well,
they'll add the rocket and aim towards 1000 mph.

For those interested in the technology, there's an interesting writeup by Ron
Ayers (Bloodhound aerodynamicist) and Andy Green on the stability of transonic
and supersonic cars here: [https://www.bloodhoundlsr.com/the-stability-of-
transonic-and...](https://www.bloodhoundlsr.com/the-stability-of-transonic-
and-supersonic-cars/)

Wishing them luck: my sons' names are on the fin!

~~~
dmurray
Why is it a big deal to achieve 491mph when others have achieved 750mph+? Is
the technology substantially different, or is there some other reason that
being viable at this speed means they have a good chance of breaking the
record or hitting 1000mph?

Not trying to be rude, just trying to understand whether the article is
reporting anything noteworthy at all (other than that the Bloodhound project
exists).

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notjustanymike
It's like SpaceX having a successful starhopper launch.

~~~
corey_moncure
What are the practical applications of a car that drives 450 mph in a dried up
lake bed? The practical applications of SpaceX are obvious.

~~~
brooksyd2
It's a project aimed at increasing children's interest in engineering the UK.
It's not designed to evolve into a commercial product.

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dijit
The city I hail from (Coventry) is the final resting place of Thrust 2 and
Thrust SSC, they are truly fascinating machines. It's hard to get a sense of
the size or scope of these machines until you see them in person. They are
housed in the transport museum in the city center and many school children are
probably incredibly tired of seeing them.

They are truly more 'aircraft' than 'car', in all respects. (even down to the
RAF pilot who "drove" it).

Incidentally the creator of the turbojet engine hails from Coventry also; I
would recommend checking out the museum, since it is good one, and British
museums are free to enter.

However Coventry is/was an absurdly crime ridden city when I was growing up so
I'm not sure I should endorse visiting.

~~~
jacquesm
> They are truly more 'aircraft' than 'car', in all respects. (even down to
> the RAF pilot who "drove" it).

And when you're moving well above take-off speeds anything that makes the body
lift will make it do just that. Serious aerodynamic challenges here, which
makes the Thrust all the more impressive given the time it was designed. No
easy access to CFD back then.

~~~
zaroth
How much less than 1g of downforce can you apply, and still be considered a
ground vehicle? I feel like once the power is no longer being applied through
the wheels that's a sign you may have crossed over! Still insanely cool, in
any case.

~~~
kijin
It's a jet car. It has crossed the "power is no longer applied through the
wheels" threshold a long time ago.

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codeulike
It seems increasingly unwise to actually have a human 'driving' these things
but I guess the human needs to be there for the world record to count.

edit: video from inside while driving
[https://youtu.be/kZQBUt3ST4Q?t=253](https://youtu.be/kZQBUt3ST4Q?t=253)

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dabeeeenster
I wasn't aware that the project was bought out of the skip!

[https://www.topgear.com/car-news/meet-man-who-
saved-1000mph-...](https://www.topgear.com/car-news/meet-man-who-
saved-1000mph-bloodhound-lsr-car)

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jacquesm
It's very nice progress but the difference between 500 and 750 mph is very
large and not just a matter of adding more thrust, keeping it from flying will
be a big challenge.

~~~
mhandley
Here's how they're tackling that challenge:
[https://www.bloodhoundlsr.com/the-stability-of-transonic-
and...](https://www.bloodhoundlsr.com/the-stability-of-transonic-and-
supersonic-cars/)

~~~
jacquesm
Fantastic read. I took a regular production car once up to 200 mph, it was an
experience I would not care to repeat. These guys are aiming for _way_ above
that and are not only good at engineering but also at communicating, this
article is really very nice. Thank you for the link.

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ur-whale
I'm a big fan of things like this, but a part of me can't help wondering who
finances this, and more importantly why?

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c16
For any people interested in this and also considering going to uni in the
near future, Swansea Uni have a close research collaboration with Bloodhound
which you get involved with!
[https://www.swansea.ac.uk/bloodhoundssc/](https://www.swansea.ac.uk/bloodhoundssc/)

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Santosh83
What happened to the Bloodhound SSC project? I remember checking on their
progress reports for a few years and the last time was over a year back. They
were sounding confident of an actual attempt this year. I guess they could not
sustain and have been taken over by a different management?

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pro_zac
As the article states, the current record is 763mph set back in 1997.
Wikipedia has the full record progression.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_speed_record](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_speed_record)

