Sonic boom visualized by Schlieren photography

Capturing the image of a sonic boom using Schlieren photography. The tip of the bullwhip went supersonic and produced a sonic boom.

The waves are clearly visible at time marks, 2:03-2:06, 2:13, 2:18, 2:28-2:31 and 3:04.

See also http://www.winrichwhips.com/

from Time Warp on Discovery Channel.
See http://www.discovery.com/timewarp

Discovery Communications own the copyright of this clip from the Time Warp TV show. Show your support by subscribing to Discover Channel, Science Channel and TLC. They are my favorite channels and my reason to subscribe to cable TV.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Capturing
• the
• image
• of
• sonic
• boom
• using
• Schlieren
• photography
• Time
• Warp
• whip
• high
• speed
• video
• Adam
• Winrich
• 音爆
• 紋影攝影

[silleeellis]

I thought sonic booms blow your ears apart thats why they have to fly km's in the air if they go faster than the speed of sound. if you flick a candle with your finger you can put it out the distortion was just heat waves i think the crack is the whip flicking back on its self like belt, this is bullshit it has to be. sonic boom is thunder when the h combines with o to produce rain and thats what happens with the aircraft, a bloud is produced and thunder is made, its a pressure barrier.

[cplai]

@silleeellis please research on "Prandtl-Glauert singularity" which causes the condensation you are talking about. Learn about "dew point" also to understand condensation (e.g. cloud) is water changing from vapor state (invisible) to liquid state (visible tiny droplets). Water condensation (a physical change) is NOT due to hydrogen combining with oxygen to form water (a chemical change).

[bobo577]

I had no idea that a whip causes a sonic boom

[cplai]

The loud pop is the sonic boom. On a helicopter, the rotor turns in a circle while the aircraft flies forward at high speed. The tip of the rotor has different air speed when it sweeps forward or backward. When sweeping forward, the airspeed is the aircraft speed plus the rotor tip's speed. Often that exceeds the sound speed and gives out the pop pop pop sonic booms.

[vickblink182]

is it me or the volume is low?

[cplai]

low. due to hardware problem of the video/computer feed.

[carolinahockey00]

@cplai The Prandtl-Glauert singularity is a spurious prediction of an approximation used outside of its range of validity. It is a linearized theory and near the speed of sound, nonlinear effects of compressibility dominate the dynamics. While the resistance is large, it is not infinite.

[OrionDigitalHD]

And of course its Adam Winrich behind the bullwhip :)

[jlmknight]

dam that cracker

[180sxdrift]

@yoshimitsu31 absolutely nothing. One should have a fedora when cracking whips as such hahaha

[yoshimitsu31]

What's wrong with his hat?

[lnclincoln]

This guy is a good slave master

[TheRikcarter]

Is anyone even remotely thinking of Guile from Street Fighter right now?

[Marzen64]

I LIKE that hat D:

[gil2264]

@cplai Actually its a BAD thing when a choppers rotor breaks the sound barrier, this IS why choppers have to travel so much slower than planes. Likewise, prop driven planes are also limited for the same reason. However, the smaller stouter prop is better able to deal with the stresses involved. If you've ever heard a small plane in a dive (for real or in a movie), that point at which the plane starts to "Scream" is the prop tips going supersonic. Stunt planes often do it @ airshows.