✈️ High-Speed Aerodynamics & Compressible Flow
Mach Number & Aerodynamics Flight Calculator
Compute Mach number ($M = v/a$), supersonic Mach shock cone angle ($\mu = \arcsin(1/M)$), and classify Subsonic, Transonic, Supersonic, and Hypersonic regimes.
✈️ Concorde (Mach 2.04)
🦅 SR-71 Blackbird (Mach 3.32)
🛫 Boeing 787 (Mach 0.85)
🚀 X-15 Hypersonic (Mach 6.7)
☄️ Shuttle Re-entry (Mach 25)
Speed & Ambient Conditions
°C (Sea level = 15°C, Stratosphere = -56.5°C)
Aerodynamic Flow Regime
Mach 2.04
Flight Speed
2,499 km/h
1,553 mph
Mach Shock Cone
μ = 29.35°
Cone Half-Angle
Local Sound Speed
340.3 m/s
1,225 km/h
💡 Shockwave Mach Angle:
$$\mu = \arcsin\left(\frac{1}{M}\right) = \arcsin\left(\frac{1}{2.04}\right) = \arcsin(0.490) = 29.35^\circ$$
Compressible Aerodynamics & Mach Regimes
Named after Ernst Mach, the Mach number characterizes compressibility in fluid flow:
- Subsonic ($M < 0.8$): Air acts incompressibly; no shock waves form.
- Transonic ($0.8 \le M < 1.2$): Mixed subsonic and supersonic localized airflow with severe drag divergence.
- Supersonic ($1.2 \le M < 5.0$): Attached oblique or detached bow shocks; sonic boom propagates along Mach cone $\mu = \arcsin(1/M)$.
- Hypersonic ($M \ge 5.0$): Extreme aerothermal heating and molecular dissociation (plasma sheath).