Concept definition study for an extremely large aerophysics range facility

Light-Gas Gun Technology: A Historical Perspective

“…A good example is development of a new very large light-gas gun at AEDC. [18] Their current method-ofcharacteristics code for evaluating light-gas gun performance was used to evaluate the performance of a light-gas gun with a 355-mm (14-inch) diameter pump tube that is 30.5-m. long. It was found that launches requiring unusually low peak acceleration (below 80,000 g) were possible from launch tubes 83-mm (3.3-inches) in diameter and 30.5-m (100-ft) long at velocities up to 6.4 km/s.…”