Ping pong ball fires at Mach speed (VIDEO)
A professor at Purdue University has created a machine that can fire ping pong balls at over Mach speed.
Sometimes scientists study or make things that have little use.
This is one of those times.
Researchers at Purdue University modified a ping pong gun to fire the ball so fast that it burned a hole through a racket.
Mechanical engineer Mark French, along with two graduate students, created the device that shoots the plastic balls to about 1300 feet per second or Mach 1.2, reported Gizmag.
The creation of the machine did have a point.
That is to show the power of pressure differentials in air, said the Daily Mail.
"It has even proven to be a challenging problem for computational fluid dynamics since it encompasses a range of aerodynamic phenomena that are particularly difficult to model," said French, reported the Daily Mail.
"The design of the team's ping-pong gun is reassuringly low-tech. It consists of a pressure chamber sealed with several layers of duct tape."
Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you. We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll help us unlock a matching gift of $67,000!