When materials are moving at hypersonic speed through the earth’s atmosphere, they get extremely hot! In aerodynamics, hypersonic speed is described as anything that exceeds 5 times the speed of sound, otherwise known as Mach 5. Most hypersonic flight can reach upwards of 20 times the speed of sound and exceed temperatures of 1800oC. This makes materials development for thermal protection a critical part of the hypersonic system design.
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