Can This Zero-Emission Rocket Fuel Save the World?
Posted April 1, 2021
It would go down as one of history s single most extreme achievements in the field of aviation.
On October 3, 1967, Colonel William Pete Knight left the Earth just another test pilot in the USAF s X-15 research program.
When he returned to Earth less than two hours later, he would do so as the record holder for the fastest flight ever in a winged aircraft.
His maximum speed that day: 4,519 miles (7,274 kilometers) per hour, or 6,627 feet per second.
To put that into context, the muzzle velocity of a typical handgun bullet is about 1,000 feet per second, with your high-powered rifle projectiles clocking in at 3,000–3,500 feet per second.