How fast does a bullet travel mph

So, then, how fast does a bullet travel? On average, bullets move at 1, mph or 2, fps. Read on to understand what bullet speed means precisely and all the factors that affect it. You could record the speed in anything from kilometers per hour to yards per minute.

Have you ever wished you were Superman? Wouldn't it be cool to be more powerful than a locomotive? It would be so easy to travel if you could leap tall buildings in a single bound. And, of course, you would get to places quickly, since you would be faster than a speeding bullet! But exactly how fast is that? If you've ever seen a bullet shot from a gun , either in real life or in the movies, you know that bullets move so fast that they can't really be seen with the naked eye.

How fast does a bullet travel mph

Superman flies "faster than a speeding bullet," and "bullet" trains zoom between cities at spectacular speed. The comparison is ubiquitous, yet the exact velocity is far less cited. So how fast do bullets actually travel? Many factors influence the speed of a bullet when it's fired from a gun. They tend to fall into two categories: internal ballistics — including the type of propellant, the bullet's weight, and the shape and length of the gun's barrel — and external ballistics, or the forces that wind, gravity and trajectory exert over a projectile as it moves through the air. Both feed into a third category, called terminal ballistics, that describes a bullet's behavior when it strikes a target. The term "bullet" actually refers to only a small part of a much larger cartridge, Michael Haag , a forensic scientist and founder of Forensic Science Consultants, told Live Science. Ammunition is made up of a primer that ignites a propellant when struck by the gun's firing pin, and this ignition creates the pressure that drives a projectile forward. Most bullets are made with heavy metals such as lead, jacketed by brass or copper, because their mass helps them hold their momentum. To illustrate this point, Haag often instructs juries to imagine throwing a ping-pong ball and a golf ball: Both leave your hand at the same speed, but the mass of the golf ball causes it to travel farther. As soon as gunpowder ignites, it burns very quickly, generating gases that push the bullet down the barrel. Related: What is the fastest animal on Earth? As the bullet moves toward the muzzle, it scrapes down the barrel's sides, which introduces some friction. But, somewhat counterintuitively, guns with longer barrels produce the fastest shots.

This article was updated in conjunction with AI technology, then fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor. The term "bullet" actually refers to only a small part of a much larger cartridge, Michael Haaga forensic scientist and founder of Forensic Science Consultants, told Live Science. Welcome, Madison!

When you are shooting a bullet, you may wonder how fast it can travel. You probably already know that a bullet has a velocity of mph when it is fired from a gun. It is important to remember that this speed is relative to you and other reference frames. When the bullet is fired from a plane, it will reach a maximum height of three kilometers and will reach a speed of mph. However, if you are shooting a bullet from a train, then the speed will be much higher. When you shoot a bullet from a gun, the speed of the bullet is not the same as the speed of sound.

How fast does a bullet trave l? And what would happen if you fired a gun on a train moving as fast as a typical bullet? The latter is a particularly good question because it involves the concept of reference frames. The quick answer is that, relative to you, the bullet will always travel at the same speed. In other reference frames, however, unexpected things can happen! We tend to rephrase this a little and say that a body in motion tends to stay in motion and a body at rest tends to stay at rest unless acted on by an external force. Imagine you are on a perfectly smooth speeding train , moving at a uniform speed not accelerating or turning , in a car with no windows. You have no way of knowing how fast you are going or if you are moving at all. If you throw a ball straight up in the air, it will come straight back down whether the train is sitting still or going 1, mph 1, kph.

How fast does a bullet travel mph

Since the Japanese Shinkansen was introduced in , high speed rail has been a popular topic in many countries throughout the world, however, only a number of countries have been able to implement the technology. One of the most important aspects concerning the bullet train is the speed in which they travel. So, how fast do bullet trains go? Most bullet trains reach at least mph, as the Japanese Shinkansen operates at up to mph, however, speed varies by country, as the French TGV operates at mph. However, any rail network that exceeds mph KMH , is considered high speed. The genesis of modern high speed rail began in Japan in , when the very first Shinkansen line, the Tokaido Line, opened between the capital of Tokyo, and Osaka.

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More Awesome Stuff. More about physics mathematics. May 19, Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Wonder Friend Nov 30, Velocity of projectile the moment it leaves the gun barrel. Back to bullets: The 6. See all comments 0. So if you put a speaker at the front of the 1, mph 1, kph train, the sound waves will not depart the train at 1, mph 2, kph. Thanks for stopping by Wonderopolis! Several factors, including the type of firearm, the cartridge, and the barrel length, determine the bullet's muzzle velocity. For example, the. In America, speed is most often thought of in terms of miles per hour mph. HI this burke form mrs.

Last updated: July 7, H as any other single invention changed history quite so much as explosives?

Thanks for displaying some, James! Air resistance : Air resistance or drag acts as a retarding force that opposes the bullet's motion. Word Match Congratulations! This, in turn, ignites the propellant , which is the main explosive that takes up about two thirds of a typical bullet 's volume. If you throw a ball straight up in the air, it will come straight back down whether the train is sitting still or going 1, mph 1, kph. A 9mm bullet typically travels at around 1, feet per second fps or miles per hour when fired from a handgun, although its speed may differ depending on factors like bullet weight, type of gunpowder load, barrel length and environmental conditions. Hi, Alex! Longer barrels provide more opportunity to rotate the bullet before it leaves the gun. Welcome, Wonder Friend! Longer barrels, like those on rifles, generally provide more space for the propellant gases to accelerate the bullet, resulting in higher speeds. But exactly how fast is that? Thanks for your patience. Jeremiah Areguin Oct 20, How fast a bullet travels is calculated with a tool called a chronograph. Wonder Friend Nov 30,