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Somewhere over England - Tiny White Speck High in the Sky ???
Hello all
Looked up into the sky today, I can't remember what time, but well after I had got out of bed. I could see a plane high in the sky, a tiny little speck. Well that got me thinking, maybe the pilot would be a PPRuNe reader and would remember going over my house, maybe even saw me and my little lad looking up. So if you flew over England today, really, really high, and quite fast, could you let us know what you were up to please ?
Hang on - you were those people on the ground, looking up, hardly seeming to move?
If you look just like an ant, that might have been us up there. We were going from A to B. Later on we went from B to A. Thinking about it, we also gave C a glancing blow, too.
It could have been me, didn't see you or the lad though cos I never look down. Scared of heights you know. Can't tell you where I was going (secret and all that). Well OK - not a secret really, in all honesty I got lost and today I don't remember what I planned yesterday. I hope I didn't look like a tiny speck, I was hoping I looked suave and dashing I'll be there again on Monday at about 1000Z or 1100 Local and promise to look down on the left side, will let you know if I see you. I may have the dark visor down but will definately be wearing the green gloves
me me me - I was there too. Not sure if it was you down on the ground - I was the good looking one in the right hand seat (with a map). Does this help Helmut?
Shytorque When you were flying from A to B, were you travelling in a Southerly direction at 200 mph?
I was wondering because if you were, I was hoping that one of your chums went From C to D, (which as every one knows is in an Easterly direction) at about 250 mph.
Please tell me your chum set off 23 minutes after you did. If so, then PM me immediately as I have a question I need answering, preferably in the next two and a half hours.
Also, do you know anyone who is good at lobbing projectiles in a vacuum or leaning ladders up against a wall?
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Lincolnshire
Age: 70
Posts: 9,355
Projectiles in a vaccuum is easy.
The vertical velocity at the apogee is zero. The maximum distance is achieved with a 45 degree launch angle. The horizontal speed component and time determine distance. Flight time is twice the time for the initial vertical velocity to reach zero.
v=u+ft s=ut+(ft^2)/2 v^2-u^2=2fs
where u is initial velocity v is final velocity t is time s is distance and f is accelaration
vertical velocity is total initial velocity X Sine of the launch angle. horizontal velocity ditto except it is Cosine of the launch angle.
PS ladders up a wall use the same sine/cosine rules.
Sine = opposite/hypotenuse (ladder length) Cosine = adjacent (distance of foot from wall)/hypotenuse
I think it might have been a terrible waste of fuel and do we really need tiny white specks anyway? I mean, we're trying to cut back aren't we? Do we really need such showing-off at the tax payers expense, who were we hoping to recruit with such a display anyway?
Couldn't have been me, I am on leave and have a 5-day beard so my Oxy mask won't fit. etc
Location: Quite near 'An aerodrome somewhere in England'
Posts: 20,197
The other 2 are:
s = ((u+v)/2) x t s = vt - (ft^2)/2
Which allows you to obtain the solution from any 4 of the terms s, u, v, f and t.
Good old O-level Add. Maths - always knew it would come in handy!
I suppose that slouching digi-yoof of today doesn't bother with such things as they would undoubtedly 'do is ed in' - and probably also thinks that Calculus is some Greek island where 'me n me m8s' go to get wasted...
Salutamus Beagle, flatus veteranus, quondam aviator magnam atque canis fumens. Professor Arithmeticae, Geometriae, Mathematicae et Grammariae. Percarus Avunculus Ppruniensis.
Somewhere over England - Tiny White Speck High in the Sky ???
‘O’ Levels, I think my Dad did them once… 
