These are awesome. Digg. For anyone interested, here's what's happening:What you see in these pictures is water vapor condensing in the shock waves around the plane. Translated: there is very high pressure at the tip of the plane, and also behind the plane, but as the plane speeds through the sound barrier it flies through a low pressure zone. The puff that you see is the moisture in the air condensing in this region of low pressure. This puff happens at the exact same instant that you would hear the sonic boom. So because of the moisture in the air you can actually "see" the shock wave.There are couple of things that are fascinating about these pictures. First, they were taken at exactly the right instant, this puff is visible for less than a second. Once the jet accelerates through the low pressure zone, the pressure equalizes and the water evaporates back into the air. And second, if the air were dry, you wouldn't see anything other than a plane speeding up.
This is indeed a Rare Photo of the "SPACE SHUTTLE" showing it at the Sonic Boom stage. Many are saying, "big deal" this isn't rare...here are some other pix I googled".....but they're of other "Jets" and not the Space Shuttle. I only saw about 2 or 3 but saw about 20 for Jets....
Ok DEADKENNY....if its not a sonic boom then explain away...oh and try to explain away xfoc's comment above while your at it. This just reinforces my earlier comment......morons...
In the article "Lisa's Adventure", posted at <a class="user" href="http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/lisa.html">http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/lisa.html</a> (via <a class="user" href="http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/intro.html">http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/intro.html</a> , "Lisa's Launch Adventure"), Lisa writes about NASA's STS-106 mission. Under "Day Two" she says:"...At the Briefing, we are told what to expect if the launch goes. After ignition, the sound waves that will travel across the water the lies between the launch pad and the viewing site will create visible waves in the water. There will be lots of smoke and noise even though we are sitting several miles away. When the shuttle breaks the speed of sound, strange condensation forms around the shuttle. Two minutes after launch time, the SRB's drop off and you can usually see them fall back into the water. In only a few minutes, the shuttle will be out of sight."Later on Lisa writes that everything "happens just as we had been told to expect." She doesn't say if she saw the condensation cloud around Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-106). That the condensation cloud formed around the orbiter isn't in doubt because by now we've all seen the image taken from a video of the STS-106 launch.About those "visible waves in the water". Here's a link to a video of an F-14 Tomcat breaking the sound barrier over the water. And the water is clearly being disturbed by the supersonic flyby: <a class="user" href="http://www.galleryoffluidmechanics.com/shocks/sfb.htm">http://www.galleryoffluidmechanics.com/shocks/sfb.htm</a>
lenwoodJan 1, 2006
These are awesome. Digg. For anyone interested, here's what's happening:What you see in these pictures is water vapor condensing in the shock waves around the plane. Translated: there is very high pressure at the tip of the plane, and also behind the plane, but as the plane speeds through the sound barrier it flies through a low pressure zone. The puff that you see is the moisture in the air condensing in this region of low pressure. This puff happens at the exact same instant that you would hear the sonic boom. So because of the moisture in the air you can actually "see" the shock wave.There are couple of things that are fascinating about these pictures. First, they were taken at exactly the right instant, this puff is visible for less than a second. Once the jet accelerates through the low pressure zone, the pressure equalizes and the water evaporates back into the air. And second, if the air were dry, you wouldn't see anything other than a plane speeding up.
cliffosakajapanJan 1, 2006Submitter
This is indeed a Rare Photo of the "SPACE SHUTTLE" showing it at the Sonic Boom stage. Many are saying, "big deal" this isn't rare...here are some other pix I googled".....but they're of other "Jets" and not the Space Shuttle. I only saw about 2 or 3 but saw about 20 for Jets....
ruffyamaharyderJan 1, 2006
Anyone else thinking about Street Fighter 2?
ledzep95Jan 2, 2006
sholy hit that's a good shot!diggTotal ++;
cyberghost232Jan 2, 2006
OK. Who the hell took that photo?
dirtyfratboyJan 2, 2006
CONGRATS ON BEING TOP STORY OF THIS YEAR!!!!!
messiahJan 2, 2006
Ok DEADKENNY....if its not a sonic boom then explain away...oh and try to explain away xfoc's comment above while your at it. This just reinforces my earlier comment......morons...
vroom101Jan 2, 2006
@DF25863"Like others have said, this is not a Sonic Boom. Here is a picture of a Boeing 777 with the same effect over LAX. And I can assure you that it is not supersonic ;)<a class="user" href="http://www.airliners.net/open.file/981791/M/">http://www.airliners.net/open.file/981791/M/"</a>Now that 777 picture is awesome. I've seen condensation like that in photos of fighter jets, but not on a commercial jet. I have a question though whether the effect is caused by the Prandtl-Glauert Singularity. Here's why: (a) Assuming the 777 is qualified to fly at transonic speeds (speeds right around Mach 1), would it do so with the wheels down? And (b) see the section "Lift-Induced Condensation" at <a class="user" href="http://www.fluidmech.net/tutorials/sonic/prandtl-glauert-clouds.htm">http://www.fluidmech.net/tutorials/sonic/prandtl-glauert-clouds.htm</a> . Given the popularity of this digg story, maybe there's someone out there that help us out with the 777 picture.@CLIFFosakaJAPANSo far, there are only three known public images of space vehicles with a Prandtl-Glauert vapor/condensation cloud: (1) The photo in the digg story ("Rare photo of Space Shuttle Sonic Boom" by CLIFFosakaJAPAN) of STS-106, Space Shuttle Atlantis (see the photo credit for image #11 at <a class="user" href="http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-20040817.htm">http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-20040817.htm</a> ). (2) The Saturn V rocket in the Apollo 11 launch. Have a look at the comment by tpodr at 12:58 AM 1/01/06, it's the second comment from the top. (3) STS-114, Space Shuttle Discovery <a class="user" href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050805/050805_shuttle_hmed_1130.hmedium.jpg">http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/050805/050805_shuttle_hmed_1130.hmedium.jpg</a> (via <a class="user" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8790614,">http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8790614,</a> "Cosmic Log: Discovery's clouds of glory," 5 August 2005) and the center image at <a class="user" href="http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-The-Spectacular-Clouds-of-the-Transonic-Flight-Regime.htm">http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-The-Spectacular-Clouds-of-the-Transonic-Flight-Regime.htm</a> (it's also image #13 at <a class="user" href="http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-20040817.htm">http://ChamorroBible.org/gpw/gpw-20040817.htm</a> ). It can also be seen in the STS-114 launch video as pointed out by in the comment by tpodr at 12:58 AM 1/01/06.Maybe a search of the NASA Image eXchange (NIX) at <a class="user" href="http://nix.nasa.gov">http://nix.nasa.gov</a> and other NASA image/video archives will reveal many more images of _space vehicles_ with the Prandtl-Glauert cloud. Until that happens though, rare it is. Hopefully at the next shuttle launch it'll be a clear day, lots and lots of high-resolution cameras focused on the shuttle and the atmospheric conditions (not sure what those would be!) are primed for a Prandtl-Glauert cloud. Then as the orbiter accelerates through the transonic regime the Prandtl-Glauert Singularity kicks in -- Presto! a Prandtl-Glauert cloud appears and perhaps stays around long enough for it to be photographed.
vroom101Jan 3, 2006
In the article "Lisa's Adventure", posted at <a class="user" href="http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/lisa.html">http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/lisa.html</a> (via <a class="user" href="http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/intro.html">http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/YWAC/sts106/intro.html</a> , "Lisa's Launch Adventure"), Lisa writes about NASA's STS-106 mission. Under "Day Two" she says:"...At the Briefing, we are told what to expect if the launch goes. After ignition, the sound waves that will travel across the water the lies between the launch pad and the viewing site will create visible waves in the water. There will be lots of smoke and noise even though we are sitting several miles away. When the shuttle breaks the speed of sound, strange condensation forms around the shuttle. Two minutes after launch time, the SRB's drop off and you can usually see them fall back into the water. In only a few minutes, the shuttle will be out of sight."Later on Lisa writes that everything "happens just as we had been told to expect." She doesn't say if she saw the condensation cloud around Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-106). That the condensation cloud formed around the orbiter isn't in doubt because by now we've all seen the image taken from a video of the STS-106 launch.About those "visible waves in the water". Here's a link to a video of an F-14 Tomcat breaking the sound barrier over the water. And the water is clearly being disturbed by the supersonic flyby: <a class="user" href="http://www.galleryoffluidmechanics.com/shocks/sfb.htm">http://www.galleryoffluidmechanics.com/shocks/sfb.htm</a>