We know you are up there, peering down onto Black Rock Desert through your telescopes, and scanning our comms to learn what is going on. Welcome! When I remember, I sometimes look up and give you a wave. Do wave back. I will not be able to see you, but it is the thought that counts. I am sure you understand that, for safety reasons, we can not allow you on the desert when ThrustSSC is running. But the surrounding hills give you a good grandstand view, and I hope you enjoy yourselves.

Talking to you after the runs (and in Bev's Bar) there are some frequently asked questions that I will attempt to answer now. Then you can impress you fellow watchers (the ones not on the Net) with your encyclopedic knowledge of our operations.

Answers to FAQ's coming up:

Why are there delays in running the car when nothing seems to be happening?
It may be something simple, such as an increase in wind speed. Or there may be a security alert because of an intruder on the desert. Or there is a fault on the car or ground equipment - after all, these cars are unique and have all the development problems you expect of a prototype. Oh yes, there is another factor. No-one is born with the knowledge of how to operate a 100,000 horsepower car. The team has to learn how to do it and mistakes can occur, so please be patient with us.

Can you operate a special radio channel to keep us hill spectators informed?
What a nice idea. However it is not feasible as our communications are already very complex. We have five channels (operations, admin, SoA contact, security, and aircraft). That is plenty for Jayne, our run controller, to operate - particularly when they all start talking at once. Fortunately she is an experienced Air Traffic Controller, and can handle an information overload that would turn lesser mortals into gibbering wrecks. But no more please.

How fast is the speed of sound?
This has been dealt with elsewhere by webmaster Jeremy, but it still gets asked. Sonic velocity depends only on air temperature. No! It does not depend on air pressure - please believe me. I will give you a little table of speed of sound in miles/hour which, I hope, will convince you:

Why do you run early in the morning?
We try to run as soon as the light is good enough because the winds tend to be low at that time, and the low temperature gives best engine performance. When we go supersonic there will be added benefit as the speed of sound is lower and hence the supersonic record will be easier to achieve.

Will a car travelling at the speed of sound make a bang?
Yes, but I do not expect it to be very loud.

Why are you making such small increases in speed with each run?
Now we are approaching the transonic region, the flow pattern around the car changes quite rapidly with small changes in Mach number. We must investigate the region carefully, and research our way through this difficult region. This could take a lot of runs, but we are determined to do it safely and carefully. At these speeds the aerodynamic forces are so powerful that we dare not make mistakes.

Finally, thank you for your interest in our project. Thank-you also for showing me pictures of your own dragsters, streamliners, rocket cars and many other amazing vehicles. You are indeed a very ingenious crowd.

The Black Rock is an area of exceptional natural and cultural interests - interests which can be easily damaged by careless use of the desert and its surrounding area. When visting the Black Rock, please read and adhere to the principles of the BLM's resource-preservation programs, Tread Lightly! and Leave No Trace.

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