Breaking the Sound Barrier
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
A SUMMARY OF “PURE HISTORY SPECIALS: BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER”
SUBMITTED TO DR. MICHAEL A. DAVIS
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COMPLETION OF HIST 222
BY
CAROLINA PHILLIPS
LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA
APRIL 3, 2014
A SUMMARY OF “PURE HISTORY SPECIALS: BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER”
Pure History Specials: Breaking the Sound Barrier” is a history documentary found on hulu.com relating to American pilots during World War II and the process in which they developed a plane that could fly faster than the speed of sound. On Earth, the speed of sound at sea level - assuming an air temperature of 59 degrees Fahrenheit - is 761.2 miles per hour.
In 1942 American pilot Robert Johnson almost died when his P47 Thunderbolt nearly reached the speed of sound. It was the fastest airplane of its time. Johnson pushed his plane full throttle at 30,000 feet when he suddenly lost control; the nose tucked under and Johnson was unable to move any of the controls until the plane reached 19,000 feet. Luckily Johnson was able to recover and spared his life. The next year test pilot Anne Carl had a similar experience. While doing acrobatic flying, she flew too fast and lost all control of the plane until it reached less dense air. Like Johnson, Carl was able to regain control and survive the traumatic experience, but many other pilots were not as fortunate. After noticing this repeated occurrence, American plane-makers began conducting tests in wind tunnels hoping to reveal what happens to aircraft near the speed of sound. Unfortunately, they had much trouble because the tunnels could not accurately reproduce the speed of sound in wind. This meant that the only way to improve plane speed and safety was to test it in real life. Captains Eric Brown, Tony Martindale, and four other pilots were asked to risk their lives in order to test out various planes at the speed of sound. After many
A SUMMARY OF “PURE HISTORY SPECIALS: BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER”
SUBMITTED TO DR. MICHAEL A. DAVIS
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COMPLETION OF HIST 222
BY
CAROLINA PHILLIPS
LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA
APRIL 3, 2014
A SUMMARY OF “PURE HISTORY SPECIALS: BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER”
Pure History Specials: Breaking the Sound Barrier” is a history documentary found on hulu.com relating to American pilots during World War II and the process in which they developed a plane that could fly faster than the speed of sound. On Earth, the speed of sound at sea level - assuming an air temperature of 59 degrees Fahrenheit - is 761.2 miles per hour.
In 1942 American pilot Robert Johnson almost died when his P47 Thunderbolt nearly reached the speed of sound. It was the fastest airplane of its time. Johnson pushed his plane full throttle at 30,000 feet when he suddenly lost control; the nose tucked under and Johnson was unable to move any of the controls until the plane reached 19,000 feet. Luckily Johnson was able to recover and spared his life. The next year test pilot Anne Carl had a similar experience. While doing acrobatic flying, she flew too fast and lost all control of the plane until it reached less dense air. Like Johnson, Carl was able to regain control and survive the traumatic experience, but many other pilots were not as fortunate. After noticing this repeated occurrence, American plane-makers began conducting tests in wind tunnels hoping to reveal what happens to aircraft near the speed of sound. Unfortunately, they had much trouble because the tunnels could not accurately reproduce the speed of sound in wind. This meant that the only way to improve plane speed and safety was to test it in real life. Captains Eric Brown, Tony Martindale, and four other pilots were asked to risk their lives in order to test out various planes at the speed of sound. After many