[rescue] Space Shuttle Main Engine

[Sandwich Maker]

" From: "Carl R. Friend" <crfriend at rcn.com>
" 
"     On Sun, 17 Jan 2010, Sandwich Maker wrote:
" 
" > " From: "Carl R. Friend" <crfriend at rcn.com>
" >
" >> "SSMEs don't get the best fuel mileage, but the thrust-to-weight-
" >> "ratio on my small Nissan.....!  :-)"
" >
" > you'd certainly top the urban folklore about the fellow who put a
" > jato on his car...
" 
"     At risk of sounding like a mere pedant, I do feel the need to
" mention that the proper term is "RATO" for "Rocket Assisted Take-
" Off".  "J", as in "jet" assumes quite a bit of assorted ancillary
" hardware (like compressors, turbines, and whatnot) whereas rockets
" can be as easy as lighting off (via suitably violent means) any
" manner of propellent.  (Note: black powder is not a propellant;
" it's a low explosive.  Smokeless counts as a propellant, but do
" not try this at home.)

yes, 'jet' has come to be shorthand for 'jet engine', 'jet
propulsion', etc...  but even rockets emit a jet of high-velocity
exhaust.

jetstream
jets of matter ejected from [near] black holes
jet of water - or air - from a nozzle

" > i've actually handled a bit of ssme.  in the early '80s i worked for
" > an ultrasonic instruments company; i was a peon in a group developing
" > a flowmeter.  it worked by sending clicks up- and downstream through
" > the liquid and measuring delta-t, and they sent us a bit of plumbing -
" > for the o2 iirc - to give it a try, but we couldn't help them.
" > massive cavitation in the flow totally destroyed our signal.
" 
"     The operant question here is what they did with the results of
" your test.  Did they just fly anyway?

yup.  at that time the very turbulent cryo fragged anything they
could stick in the stream, so they gave up and went back to estimation
based on indirect measurements and inferences.
________________________________________________________________________
Andrew Hay                                  the genius nature
internet rambler                            is to see what all have seen
adh at an.bradford.ma.us                       and think what none thought