Improving supersonic flights with femtosecond laser filamentation.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 30406206.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/sciadv.aau5239 and PMC identifier 6214642.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC.
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Abstract
When a flying object becomes supersonic, a concomitant increase in drag leads to a considerable rise in fuel consumption. We show experimentally that an embarked terawatt femtosecond laser can significantly decrease this drag. We measured a 50% transient reduction of drag on a test model placed in a supersonic wind tunnel at Mach 3. This effect was initiated by the thin hot air column created in front of the supersonic object by filamentation of the laser pulse. We also show that this technique offers possibilities for steering.