Object Details
Manufacturer
Northrop Aircraft Inc.
Summary
This is the Sonic Wind 1 rocket sled, which was powered by nine solid fuel rockets with 40,000 pounds total thrust for five seconds. Air Force Lt. Col. John Stapp first rode the sled on March 19, 1954, at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, and reached a speed of 613 feet per second. During acceleration, he was subjected to a force of 22 times that of gravity (22 g's). He made his second run on the sled on August 20, 1954 attaining a speed of 735 feet per second.
On December 10, 1954, he made his last and most notable ride on the sled reaching a speed of 632 miles per hour. Stapp underwent a force of 40 g's, the highest g force any human had endured to that time. The sled rides helped determine the effects of extreme acceleration on the human body, data that was very useful in aerospace medicine.
The sled was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1966 by the U.S. Air Force.
Credit Line
Transferred from U.S. Air Force
Date
1953-1954
Inventory Number
A19680015000
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Type
PROPULSION-Miscellaneous
Materials
Originally made of chrome-molybdenum tubing; overall, steel.
Dimensions
Overall: 24 ft. 4 in. × 6 ft. 4 in. × 8 ft., 11000lb. (741.7 × 193 × 243.8cm, 4989.6kg)
3-D (rocket, each): 49.9kg (110lb.)
Country of Origin
United States of America
See more items in
National Air and Space Museum Collection
Location
National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC
Exhibition
Nation of Speed
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nasm_A19680015000