OFF: Re: Nominee for this year's Darwin Awards [via LSMTP - see www.lsoft.com]

[Hardman DK]

On Wed, 12 Jun 1996, Le Monsieur Damon wrote:

> OK... how does a Chevy Impala become airborne?  The first paragraph
> implies that the truck was on the road below the crash site.  Now, unless
> a Chevy Impala has wings, it shouldn't be able to rise above the road, no
> matter how fast (up to escape velocity, at any rate).

Presumably a rocket of this power could go any damn place it pleases? If
these things are supposed to give oomph to a fighter plane, then I would
guess the weight of a motor car to be totally insignificant. Any minor
factor, such as the direction of thrust, or the car hitting a bump in the
road, would be enough to make the car "take-off". Also, I don't know what
shape a Chevy Impala is, but motor cars generally have a tendency towards
upward thrust, because the underside is flat whereas the top side isn't --
thus air passing over the vehicle is slowed relative to air passing under
the vehicle.  On ordinary vehicles this is totally insignificant given the
weight of the car, but grand prix motor vehicles have aerofoils, "upside
down" wings that create a downward thrust to give the car extra traction
on the road surface.

Dave