I’m no scientist so I have a stupid question. Why does fire trail behind the projectile when no explosives are used to fire the gun?
Because the projectile is moving so fast it is heating up the air when it moves through it.
Kinda like re-entry heating.
I’m no scientist so I have a stupid question. Why does fire trail behind the projectile when no explosives are used to fire the gun?Those who talk don't know, and those who know don't talk.
My guess is that some of the projectile is being vaporized in the process of magnetic induction of the projectile. Any of the input electrical energy not translated into forward velocity will be dissipated as heat. Basically like a really big electrical short!
Heat.
Air becomes plasma beyond a certain temp and will glow.
Friction. Causes the water in the air to condense. Also the heat generated on the rail will cause smoke.
“Why does fire trail behind the projectile when no explosives are used to fire the gun?”
I can tell you where some of it comes from - friction. This 5 inch bullet is still something that only gets a force on it in the first few milliseconds, and then from there, gravity takes over.
Not sure what the speed is, but its gotta to be moving at many times the speed of sound. (This will account for any ‘boom’).
At the speed of sound, the air around the object is going to get hot, so hot that it will make a trail of vapor behind it. The projectile will rub the air, and the water in the air, causing it to heat up and form ‘clouds’ behind it.
What may ALSO happen, though I’m not sure about this bit, is that a rail gun works on electromagnets. It wouldn’t surprise me if there was some plasma forming behind and around the projectile in the first second of flight. Ships are made of metal, but you are creating a magnetic field in order to launch the bullet. Move metal through any magnetic field and you get static (Direct Current type) electricity. Static electricity and lightning are literally the same thing.
Consider that the Earth has a magnetic field around it, and consider that the core of the earth is made of iron and nickel. As the Earth turns inside the magnetosphere, the atmosphere builds up electrical charge. Get enough charged clouds in one place and you end up with lightning.
The projectile is moving fast enough to heat the air impinging on it's front (by compression) to incandescence. Leaving the appearance of fire in its wake.
Regards,
GtG