physics

Hurricane Supersonic Research Site

Hurricane Supersonic Research Site is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Hurricane Supersonic Research Site rather than just read about it. In short: The Hurricane Supersonic Research Site (HSRS) was formerly on Hurricane Mesa in Washington County, Utah. It was a United States Air Force (USAF) launch complex with a rocket research track that launched a rocket ejection seat from a supersonic sled.

Key takeaways

Hurricane Supersonic Research Site belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Hurricane Supersonic Research Site to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hurricane Supersonic Research Site from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Hurricane Supersonic Research Site (HSRS) was formerly on Hurricane Mesa in Washington County, Utah. It was a United States Air Force (USAF) launch complex with a rocket research track that launched a rocket ejection seat from a supersonic sled. The track's 12,000 ft (3,700 m) "of continuously welded, heavy-duty crane-rails aligned to within plus or minus one-tenth inch tolerance [was] the longest" in the US (cf. the shorter 1954 Holloman Rocket Sled). Coleman Engineering Company was contracted for $2 million in June 1954 and constructed the Supersonic Military Air Research Track (SMART), mechanical arresting gear (water brakes with 34 tons of force), retro rockets, and photographic/telemetering facilities. Coleman was also contracted for operations on November 30, 1955, and achieved a "world land speed record [using] a 9,400-pound sled rocketing down the track at 1,800 miles per hour." The numerous test facilities included a powered comparator for high-speed motion pictures, a 1956 IBM 706 computer, and 1960 Bendix G-15 computer. Control of the site transferred from Indian Springs Air Force Base on November 6, 1957, and from Wright-Patterson AFB to Edwards AFB on March 9, 1962—the base was placed on standby in December 1961, and was closed on June 20, 1963. The 3,500.78-acre (1,416.72 ha) Formerly Used Defense Site (J08UT0026) initially transferred to Stanley Aviation and was leased to Sacol, Inc. on May 21, 1965. Adjacent to the test track, in an abandoned, out-of-service airstrip, which was called the Hurricane Mesa Airport.(37°14′59″N 113°12′31″W) Now called the Hurricane Mesa Test Facility it is owned and managed by the Collins Aerospace division of the Raytheon Technologies Corporation. Currently the facility is still used to test military ejection seats for the U.S. and foreign governments.

References

External links Media related to Hurricane Supersonic Research Site at Wikimedia Commons

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hurricane Supersonic Research Site

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hurricane Supersonic Research Site claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Hurricane Supersonic Research Site before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Hurricane Supersonic Research Site ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Hurricane Supersonic Research Site

In research: Hurricane Supersonic Research Site appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Hurricane Supersonic Research Site in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Hurricane Supersonic Research Site is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Formerly Used Defense Sites in Utah, Military installations closed in 1965, Military installations established in 1954, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hurricane Supersonic Research Site outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Hurricane Supersonic Research Site in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hurricane Supersonic Research Site means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Hurricane Supersonic Research Site out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hurricane Supersonic Research Site in simple terms?

Why does Hurricane Supersonic Research Site matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Hurricane Supersonic Research Site?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Hurricane Supersonic Research Site.