[Vision2020] "Acceleration" Defined

Melynda Huskey melyndahuskey at earthlink.net
Thu Jan 12 10:34:42 PST 2006


Dear Dan,

I would never have guessed that you, our own Area Man, were such an able competitor for Joan's Geekhead President for Life title.  Still, "laugh while you can, Monkey Boy."  I'll bet you never won a free movie rental at Howard Hughes for *your* wife by knowing how long it took Han Solo to make the Kessel Run.

Melynda Huskey

P.S.  I used that free rental on a *Metropolis/Cabinet of Dr. Caligari* double feature.  But at our house, she who watches the towering works of German Expressionist film, watches alone.  Everybody else was watching *Bulletproof Monk.*

-----Original Message-----
>From: "Area Man (Dan C)" <areaman at moscow.com>
>Sent: Jan 12, 2006 8:46 AM
>To: vision2020 at moscow.com
>Subject: RE: [Vision2020] "Acceleration" Defined
>
>Sunil, 
>
>You are thinking about Cyberdyne, which was taken over by Skynet after
>it became self-aware and began manufacturing said Terminators.
>
>Sometimes mistaken for Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems, which was
>responsible for the construction of  Buckaroo Banzai's Oscillation
>Overthruster.
>
>Have a geektastic day,
>
>DC
>
>P.S.  Dragsters are cooler than space shuttles.  Mostly because you'll
>never have an astronaut quite as colorful as John Force.
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com
>[mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com] On Behalf Of Sunil Ramalingam
>Sent: Thursday, January 12, 2006 5:09 AM
>To: starbliss at gmail.com; thansen at moscow.com
>Cc: vision2020 at moscow.com
>Subject: Re: [Vision2020] "Acceleration" Defined
>
>
>Ted,
>
>Isn't Rocketdyne the outfit that manufactured the Terminators that
>menaced 
>Los Angeles in the late 1980s and early 1990s?
>
>Sunil
>
>
>>From: Ted Moffett <starbliss at gmail.com>
>>To: Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com>
>>CC: Moscow Vision 2020 <vision2020 at moscow.com>
>>Subject: Re: [Vision2020] "Acceleration" Defined
>>Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2006 00:15:42 -0800
>>
>>Tom et. al.
>>
>>You seemed to miss the joke in my suggestion that the CBD could become 
>>a Trinitarian Village like "Chinatown" in some large US cities, but 
>>this is no
>>joke:
>>
>>You want horsepower?  Forget the dragster!  How about engines in one 
>>"machine" with the output of 13 Hoover Dams?
>>
>>Try this:
>>
>>http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/propul/SSMEamaz.html
>>
>>Rocketdyne's Space Shuttle Main Engine operates at greater temperature 
>>extremes than any mechanical system in common use today. The liquid 
>>hydrogen fuel is -423 degrees Fahrenheit, the second coldest liquid on 
>>Earth. When the hydrogen is burned with liquid oxygen, the temperature 
>>in the engine's combustion chamber reaches +6000 degrees Fahrenheit - 
>>that's higher than the
>>boiling point of Iron.
>>
>>
>>    - The maximum equivalent horsepower developed by the three SSMEs is
>>    just over 37 million horsepower.
>>    - The energy released by three of Rocketdyne's Space Shuttle Main
>>    engines is equivalent to the output of 13 Hoover Dams.
>>    - Although not much larger than an automobile engine, the SSME
>>    high-pressure fuel turbopump generates 100 horsepower for each 
>>pound of
>>its
>>    weight, while an automobile engine generates about one-half
>horsepower 
>>for
>>    each pound of its weight.
>>    - Even though Rocketdyne's SSME weighs one-seventh as much as a
>>    locomotive engine, its high-pressure fuel pump alone delivers as
>much
>>    horsepower as 28 locomotives, while its high-pressure oxidizer pump
>
>>delivers
>>    the equivalent horsepower for 11 more.
>>    - If water, instead of fuel, were pumped by the three Space Shuttle
>>    Main Engines, an average family-sized swimming pool could be
>drained in 
>>25
>>    seconds.
>>    - The SSME high-pressure fuel turbopump main shaft rotates at
>37,000
>>    rpm compared to about 3,000 rpm for an automobile operating at 60
>mph.
>>    - The discharge pressure of an SSME high-pressure fuel turbopump
>could
>>    send a column of liquid hydrogen 36 miles in the air
>>
>>------------------
>>
>>Ted Moffett
>>
>>
>>On 1/10/06, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com> wrote:
>> >
>> >  "Acceleration" as defined by Keith Black 
>> > (http://www.keithblack.com)
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > 
>>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>-----------------------------------------
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > One top fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more 
>> > horsepower
>> >
>> > than the first 4 rows of stock cars at the Daytona 500.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of 
>> > nitro
>> >
>> > methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same
>> >
>> > rate with 25% less energy being produced.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive 
>> > the
>> >
>> > dragster's supercharger. With 3,000 CFM of air being rammed in by 
>> > the
>> >
>> > supercharger on overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a
>> >
>> > near-solid form before ignition.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full throttle.
>> >
>> > At 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture of nitro methane, the flame front
>> >
>> > temperature measures 7,050 deg F.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Nitro methane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above 
>> > the
>> >
>> > stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from 
>> > atmospheric
>> >
>> > water vapor by the searing exhaust gases.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output 
>> > of
>> >
>> > an arc welder in each cylinder. Spark plug electrodes are totally
>> >
>> > consumed during a pass. After halfway, the engine is dieseling from
>> >
>> > compression, plus the glow of exhaust valves at 1,400 deg F. The 
>> > engine
>> >
>> > can only be shut down by cutting the fuel flow.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds 
>> > up
>> >
>> > In the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to
>>blow
>> >
>> > cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > In order to exceed 3 00 mph in 4.5 seconds, dragsters must 
>> > accelerate an
>> >
>> > average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph (well before
>> >
>> > half-track), the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed
>> >
>> > reading this sentence. Top fuel engines turn approximately 540
>> >
>> > revolutions from light to light! Including the burnout, the engine 
>> > must
>> >
>> > only survive 900 revolutions under load.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The redline is actually quite high at 9,500 rpm.
>> >
>> > Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, 
>> > and
>> >
>> > for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimate $1,000.00 per
>> >
>> > second.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The current top fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds 
>> > for
>> >
>> > the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). The top speed record 
>> > is
>> >
>> > 333.00 mph (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66' of the run
>> >
>> > (09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Putting all of this into perspective, picture this scenario:
>> >
>> > You are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter "twin-turbo" 
>> > powered
>> >
>> > Corvette Z06. Over a mile up the road, a top fuel dragster is staged
>> >
>> > and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have 
>> > the
>> >
>> > advantage of a flying start. You run the 'Vette hard up through the
>> >
>> > gears and blast across the starting line and pass the dragster at an
>> >
>> > honest 200 mph. The "tree" goes green for both of you at that 
>> > moment.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your foot down
>> >
>> > hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your 
>> > eardrums
>> >
>> > and within 3 seconds, the dragster catches and passes you. He beats 
>> > you
>> >
>> > to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed 
>> > him.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 
>> > 200
>> >
>> > mph and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he
>> >
>> > passed you within a mere 1,320 foot long race course.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > 
>>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>-----------------------------------------
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > And that, my friend, is ACCELERATION!
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Take care, Moscow.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Tom Hansen
>> >
>> > Moscow, Idaho
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > "Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of
>>arriving
>> > safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid 
>> > in sideways, chocolate in one hand, a drink in the other, body 
>> > thoroughly
>>used
>> > up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO HOO. What a ride!'"
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > _____________________________________________________
>> >  List services made available by First Step Internet,  serving the 
>> > communities of the Palouse since 1994.
>> >               http://www.fsr.net
>> >          mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com 
>> > ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
>> >
>> >
>> >
>
>
>>_____________________________________________________
>>  List services made available by First Step Internet,
>>  serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
>>                http://www.fsr.net
>>           mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com 
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>
>
>_____________________________________________________
> List services made available by First Step Internet, 
> serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.   
>               http://www.fsr.net                       
>          mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
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>
>
>
>_____________________________________________________
> List services made available by First Step Internet, 
> serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.   
>               http://www.fsr.net                       
>          mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
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