I think the stories coming out of CNN depend on whether their domestic or international bureau wrote it. The international stories often have SI only, and I think the domestic side just leaves it that way, thus pushing the envelope.
Let's see how NASA reports it, when they get their website updated. Nat -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Chimpsarecute Sent: Sunday, 2004 March 28 12:53 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:29337] Re: 8,000 km/h record This is a real impressive use of metric units. I just wonder what the real numbers are before they were changed to FFU, then rounded to give the impression of being FFU based, then reconverted back to metric without going back to the original numbers. Euric The 12-foot-long (3.65-meter), X-43A experimental craft rode atop a Pegasus booster rocket that was launched from a converted B-52 bomber about 400 miles (643 kilometers) off the coast of southern California. As planned, the X-43A plunged into the Pacific Ocean after the test and was not recovered. Pegasus, which flew to nearly 100,000 feet, reached a speed of Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound, preliminary data on the test flight showed. The needle-nosed scramjet then reached a maximum speed of slightly over seven times the speed of sound, or about 5,000 mph (8,000 kilometers). ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nat Hager III" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, 2004-03-28 12:38 Subject: [USMA:29336] 8,000 km/h record > I'm sure everyone's following the successful test of the hypersonic > aircraft yesterday, at speeds up to 8,000 km/h Mach 7: > > http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/03/28/hypersonic.jet.flight/index.h > tm > l > > The significance is that it used an air-breathing engine called a > scramjet, which could change the economics of rocket launch > considerably. NASA has a link to it which will soon be updated, but > they're probably still recovering from last nights celebrations. <g> > > http://www.nasa.gov/missions/research/x43-main.html > > Nat > >
