Yep, you heard me right, I'm going to build the world's first supersonic RC plane, almost doubling the world's present RC speed record. Reason why I'm doing this is to get the attention of the aerospace industry so that they might consider me someday.
Yes, I know the technical challenges will be enormous, but that is why I am doing this, to demonstrate what I can do. Plus it will finally be a chance for me to put my degree to use.
Now the biggest challenge will be finding a place for me to actually fly supersonically, not that every flight has to be supersonic. I am aware that when airplanes travel at that speed a sonic boom is usually created. However, since this design will be smaller, so will the sonic boom.
Another concern of mine will be heat, as air friction compresses the air, heating it up. The temperature I estimate I will reach will exceed the maximum of some of the components, so I will need some sort of cooling mechanism, and just fans won't cut it.
Now I know some of you may have alarming concerns, but if you calmly address them with me I will address them. I'm posting this here because I may need advise for the type of parts I need and other recommendations you may have.
Aerospace V logger out.
Replies
You can do this with a foamy believe it or not. Carry the plane to high altitude on a balloon and drop it from 140,000 ft. Even a foamy jet could go supersonic from that altitude. (I'm not going to try it though)
The LOHAN project might break the speed of sound if they get a chance to do it.
Team Prometheus is close to an attempt with the Condor X-11 Spaceplane. We have done some ground testing and Mission Control is nearly complete.
For FAA regulations in the US look at the group here on DIYD "Ardupilot Space Program. There are some new twist for FPV but you CAN get a waiver from the FAA for all this.
Here is a live video test of the "Narrow band" Video link to get 250 mile range on 7 watts in 25khz bandwidth. The resolution is plenty good to fly by.
Tracking antenna
What altitude did team Prometheus reach?
Wait, you're saying you can drop a foam airplane and it will go supersonic on the way down??? Wouldn't it hit terminal velocity pretty quickly?
Terminal Velocity from 100,000 ft is about Mach 1 you can break the sound barrier with a glider. Add a little rocket boost and wala.
How are you calculating the drag force?
I call shenanigans! If this person is indeed an aerospace engineer, they should know damn well that this next to impossible...
And on a $3,000 budget, it is impossible. Not to be a downer, but keep in mind that the fastest RC's are <mach 0.5
They're built and flown by people with lots of real world experience.
To sum things up, doubling the speed of the fastest planes in the world... without any experience.... just isn't gonna happen.
I just watched a hotliner @ I think 468mph, that's over half mach 1. Single prop.
Seems to me the problem might be with moving fan blades past mach 1, I have doubts a prop/fan would hold up to the shock of breaking the sound barrier all the time and stay balanced and fast.
Pulse Jet maybe? On $3k tho, that'd be the trick..
How exactly are you going to control a 3ft dot in the sky moving at 800mph??? You won't be able to see it. And you will fly out of range of FPV in a few seconds. And your FPV camera probably won't even be able to see anything moving that fast. You would need to use a GPS guided flight controller, since you will not be able to control it from the ground. I highly doubt the APM or Pixhawk can handle that.
This thing could only be safely flown over unpopulated ground or water. Since it will basically be an experimental guided missile. The desert or an ocean.
You need to add an extra zero just to have a camera capable of producing a clear picture at 800mph. And less than a minute of FPV includes high gain FPV antennas with tracking.
Are there any FPV signal range boosters? And what do you mean "your FPV camera probably won't even be able to see anything moving that fast." Is it something to do with frame-rate issues?
But yes I am considering using a GPS system to confirm the speed. But keep in mind not every flight has to be supersonic.
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