by 115-1170124124 » Fri Feb 23, 2007 4:03 am
For ref sake, the International Standard Atmosphere is defined as starting at sea level and 59*F. Pressure is ~2116psf and the speed of sound is ~1116fps. At 10000 feet, temp, pressure, and "a" are 23*F, 1455, and 1077 respectively. 20,000 feet: -12, 972 and 1036. 30,000 feet: -48, 628, and 994. At 36,089 feet (the tropopause): -70, 473, 968. From 36,089 to somewhere around 65,610ft (another "pause" which I don't remember right now), the temp remains constant at -70 AND "a" stays constant at 968fps while the pressure drops from 473 to 114psf. At 75,000, the temp increases to -65 and the speed of sound also increases to 974 while the pressure continues to drop to 73psf. This pretty much removes pressure from the speed of sound calculation. Just so we have a consistent reference. -- Doug