![]() ![]() I’m not going to put it past Tesla to develop a system that can work. Since the Roadster will pack a 200 kWh battery, the theory goes that it could stay in the air 267 percent longer than the 75-kWh Model 3, or the equivalent of seven minutes, assuming the battery is fully charged and no energy is spent on other things. Using a formula that looks about as alien to me as Egyptian hieroglyphics, Allain arrives at two important figures: an airspeed of 190 meters per second and total energy of 1.7 megawatts. Allan arrives at one with a diameter of 20 inches and an area of 0.81 square meters. The second one is the size of the fan, specifically its diameter. To illustrate this example, Allain assumes that the Roadster weighs as much as the Tesla Model 3. Another option, according to Allain, would be to use smaller rotors with lower mass air that moves at a faster speed. But doing so would create space and weight issues. ![]() According to the momentum principle, this change in momentum requires a force and it is this force that counteracts the gravitational force to make the car fly.”įor Tesla to generate the volume of air it needs to lift the Roadster’s weight off the ground, it would need the equivalent of a huge fan to do it. Even if Musk and Tesla somehow check all these boxes, there are also safety aspects that they need to address, especially if the car is storing pressurized storage tanks that could spell trouble for the Roadster’s occupants if something unforeseen happens.ĭiving further into the physics element of the issue, Allain adds: “Momentum is the product of mass and velocity. And unless Musk only wants the Roadster to go vertically, he’s going to have to develop a guidance system for when the Roadster is in flight. That’s not even mentioning the Roadster requiring some form of compressed inert gas that also has to be stored somewhere in the vehicle. Musk has previously hinted that an electric pump would be able to replenish compressed air inside a pressure vessel - he claims that this pressure vessel will occupy the space traditionally allocated for the two rear seats - but that electric pump is going to require significant amounts of power as well. Increased costs and countless hours of engineering notwithstanding, is that impossible? I’m no rocket scientist, nor will I ever be one, so I can’t answer that question with full certainty. His position is based on the premise that, with a more sophisticated version of the SpaceX’s cold-air propulsion system, the Roadster could leave the ground and stay off the ground for some time. This is important because Musk didn’t exactly say that the Roadster will be able to do the same thing. It can lift off the ground and take us to long-distance destinations like what a plane can do. For most of us, a flying car is a flying car. But there is a proper distinction on what our expectations are of a flying car as opposed to what Musk thinks the Roadster can eventually do.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |