The era of the Scramjet?

"Me? I am looking at the positive side of this new technology. This is the missing link of avionics before we venture out into outer space and inner space." 

Well Putin has done it again. In the midst of the United States getting back on its feet economically, Putin has decided to "throw a turd in the punch bowl". Really? Like how? Like telling us he now has "unstoppable" nukes, and has even put together a cartoon showing how he could make a day at Orlando Disney World, anything but enjoyable. The suspicion of some at the Pentagon? Russia might now have the same thing we are working on. A cruise missile using scramjet technology. 

For those who don't know what a scramjet is, let me try and help. Simply put, it is the Golden Fleece of avionics. Since the Wright Brothers first took flight in North Carolina, avionics has gone from propeller, to jet, to ramjet, to {missing} to rocket engine. The {missing} is the scramjet engine which has been worked on for decades now. And once it is truly operational, it will change everything, for everyone.

We have worked on scramjet technology by ourselves. We have worked on it with the Australians. The Indians are working on it. And of course, so are the Russians. Currently, we have flown an unmanned scramjet at an unbelievable record breaking speed of Mach 9.5. It is thought by experts that the upper limit for this technology might be Mach 15. Why is that important? Try Sydney to Los Angels in about 90 minutes (or less)rather than over 12 hours (or more). After flying to Sydney and back at 14 hours each way, I would gladly take and hour and a half one way. 

The technology to fly this fast is daunting to say the least. If you fly too low, the density of air will burn the all or part of your jet. If you fly too high, there is simply not enough oxygen to power the supersonic air flow through your jet (crash). The "sweet spot" then, is about 100,000 feet. To fly that high, and that fast, very little wing power is needed. The future airliners using this technology will look similar to very large cruise missiles.

Back to Putin's boast. Big deal. Our deterrent to nuclear war with the Russians has been MAD since the Cold War started. They may be able to defeat our defenses with their new whiz-bang technology, but we can still defeat their defenses with what we have in stock. Then at the end of the day, both countries are uninhabitable.  

Me? I am looking at the positive side of this new technology. This is the missing link of avionics before we venture out into outer space and inner space. This is the technology which will make our very large planet much, much smaller. As we approach the singularity in 2025, scramjet technology will just be the frosting on the cake.