Perhaps every person wondered what is the highest speed in the world? It is rather difficult to answer this question, as different people understand it differently. Some imply the maximum speed of a person, others - a car, and the third - an airplane. However, almost all world speed records set by man will be presented below.
Ground transport record
The ground speed record was set in 1997. He belongs to the British Andy Green. He, together with his team, was able to build a jet engine (if you can call it that), which was able to develop the highest vehicle speed in the world and accelerate to 1,228 km / h.
Now the rider's team is creating a new model called Bloodhound SSC, which could reach speeds of more than 1,600 km / h.
According to experts, if the new model meets all expectations, then it will move faster than a bullet. In appearance, the Bloodhound SSC resembles a jet aircraft without wings. And this is not surprising, because the creation of the machine involved in the aviation soldiers.
The fastest person in the world
The fastest man in the world can rightfully be called Brazilian Usain Bolt, who set two world records at once in speed: in distances of 100 and 200 meters. During the hundred-meter race, Usain developed a speed slightly higher than 37.5 km / h, due to which he broke away from his rivals.
Scientists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico were amazed at the results of the athlete and called it a phenomenon in terms of genetics and body structure.
Usain Bolt has a height of 195 centimeters, so it can be called high athletes. On the one hand, such growth gives an athlete an advantage, allowing him to take big steps. On the other hand, it becomes the cause of strong air resistance - scientists found that about 92% of the energy spent during the race was spent specifically on overcoming the air resistance forces.
Speed record in electric water transport
The record in the category "the fastest watercraft equipped with an electric motor" was set recently, in 2017.
The record holder was a boat released by Jaguar together with Williams Advanced. It is worth noting that Williams Advanced are part of a large corporation, which includes Formula 1. Due to this, in the new boat Jaguar Vector Racing V20E used technologies and developments similar in structure to the elements of racing cars.
At the rear of the boat are two electric motors with a total capacity of 300 liters. from. The mass of the boat is only 320 kg.
To set a new record, the boat had to make two races in different directions, each of which was given 10 minutes. The speed was recorded on a small stretch of track 1 km long. According to the test results, the Jaguar Vector Racing V20E was able to reach a speed of 142 km / h, which is almost 20 km / h more than the previous record set in 2008.
It is worth noting that this mark is a record among water electric vehicles. The highest speed in the world on a boat was set by Ken Warby in 1978 - 511 km / h.
Air speed record
The highest speed in the world in the air was developed by the X-43A. During testing, the unmanned device showed amazing results. Its speed is 11,230 km / h (the largest developed speed in the world), which is almost 10 times higher than the speed of sound.
The X-43A was developed by NASA. Engineers had to do a lot of research on the supersonic engines that the aircraft was later equipped with. About $ 250 million was spent on the creation of the apparatus.
The features of the X-43A include its small size. The wingspan of the device is only one and a half meters, and its length is 3.6 meters. A direct-flow supersonic engine that runs on oxygen-hydrogen fuel was installed on the model. To make the machine’s weight minimal, the engineers decided not to install an oxygen tank on the plane, but to make sure that oxygen entered the engine directly from the air. Thanks to this solution, ordinary water vapor was released during engine operation.
The fastest motorcycle
For the record for the highest speed developed on a motorcycle, two riders fought at once: Rocky Robinson and Chris Carr.
On September 3, 2006, Rocky Robinson set a record on a motorcycle at a speed of 552 km / h. After only 2 days, Chris Carr sets a new record - 564 km / h. However, this did not end there. The teams of both riders began to upgrade their vehicles to set a new speed record. The engine power of the new models exceeded 500 liters. s., and they already looked a little like motorcycles because of their large size.
A few years later, or rather September 26, 2008, Rocky Robinson stepped on the track and developed a speed of 580 km / h on his motorcycle. A year later, on September 24, 2009, Chris Carr set a new record - 591 km / h, but Robinson nevertheless set the final point in the competition, having dispersed his motorcycle on September 25, 2010 to 605 km / h.
The Rocky motorcycle was able to develop the highest speed in the world among two-wheeled vehicles. His record is not broken to this day.
The fastest mass production machines
It is worth noting several production cars that are capable of speeds exceeding 400 km / h:
- Koenigsegg Agera (447 km / h - the highest machine speed in the world). The car is considered the fastest among mass-produced models. Under the hood, the car has a 5-liter engine, which allowed to set a record.
- Bugatti Veyron. For a long time (from 2010 to 2017), the Veyron series cars were considered the fastest in the world, until they were replaced by Swiss models.
- Hennessey Venom. Despite the fact that the Hennessey Venom GT model exceeded the 430 km / h threshold, it was not included in the Guinness Book of Records, since during the test one of the main conditions was not met - travel on the highway in both directions (to exclude the influence of the passing wind).
- SSC Ultimate. The manufacturers of this supercar stated that it could accelerate to the level of 435 km / h, but this data was not verified, and during the tests the car accelerated to 415 km / h.