HIFiRE Hypersonic superjet technology successfully tested in Australia

                On 18 May 2016, a team of scientists successfully tested hypersonic superjet technology as part of the Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation (HIFiRE) program. As part of the test, scramjet attached to a rocket booster was successfully sent to an altitude of 278 km. at Mach 7.5 (seven times the speed of sound). The test was conducted in Woomera, South Australia.

Main Features:

•          It is one of the largest collaborative research programs between Australia and the USA.
•          It aims to explore the fundamental science of hypersonics and the potential for next generation aeronautical system.
•          Hypersonic flight is a flight through the atmosphere at speeds above Mach 5.5, or more than five times the speed of sound.
•          The program has already achieved some significant milestones such as the design, assembly and pre-flight testing of the hypersonic vehicles and the design of complex avionics and flight systems.
•          It is considered as one of the most advances hypersonics programs in the world.
•          It is supersonic combustion technology that uses oxygen from the atmosphere for fuel.