Study hard, get a tech degree, and who knows, you may be able to work on the U.S. Army's advanced new hypersonic weapon, an aircraft that streaks through the atmosphere at speeds nearing 4,000 mph.
Recent hypersonic test flights conducted by DARPA, the Pentagon's research arm, proved that a hypersonic weapon could follow a flat trajectory within the atmosphere—as opposed to a ballistic missile flight path that arcs through space to reach a ground target.
The Army's Advanced Hypersonic Weapon is piggybacked on a three-stage booster system and then deployed for its hypersonic glide. Flight tests from space, air, sea and ground have allowed the Pentagon to collect important data about the new aircraft’s aerodynamics, navigation, guidance and control performance. They’ve also been studying ways to reduce the intense heat built up during hypersonic flight.
Crestfallen by crashes of its Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2 (HTV-2), DARPA researchers were buoyed by subsequent tests that successfully pushed the HTV-2 to Mach 20 speeds (about 14,000 mph). Not to be outdone, the Air Force recently tested its X-51A Waverider vehicle, which uses an air-breathing scramjet engine. Unfortunately, the X-51A Waverider was only able to reach Mach 5 speeds.
These Army-Air Force hypersonic flight competitions are reminiscent of the early days of U.S. rocket and missile development. Both military branches hope to develop hypersonic craft that address the need for a "Conventional Prompt Global Strike," one that can neutralize a target anywhere on the planet in approximately 60 minutes.
For an additional perspective, check out this video:
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Alex A. Kecskes has written hundreds of published articles on health/fitness, "green" issues, TV/film entertainment, restaurant reviews and many other topics. As a former Andy/Belding/One Show ad agency copywriter, he also writes web content, ads, brochures, sales letters, mailers and scripts for national B2B and B2C clients. Please see more of his blogs and view additional job postings on Nexxt.
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