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− | '''Mach number''' (Ma) (pronounced in British English | + | '''Mach number''' (Ma) (pronounced "mack" in British English and "mock" in American English) is defined as a ratio of the speed of an object or flow relative to the speed of sound in the medium through which it is travelling. |
− | The Mach number is commonly used both with objects | + | The Mach number is commonly used both with objects travelling at high speed in a fluid, and with high-speed fluid flows inside channels such as nozzles, diffusers or wind tunnels. As it is defined as a ratio of two speeds, it is a dimensionless number. At standard sea level conditions, Mach 1 is 1,225 km·h-1 (761.2 mph) in the atmosphere. |
− | Since the speed of sound increases as the | + | Since the speed of sound increases as the temperature increases, the actual speed of an object travelling at Mach 1 will depend on the fluid temperature around it. |
The Mach number is named after Austrian physicist and philosopher Ernst Mach. | The Mach number is named after Austrian physicist and philosopher Ernst Mach. | ||
− | A longer and more technical version of the article on [ | + | A longer and more technical version of the article on Wikipedia [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mach_%28speed%29] |
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