Hypervelocity refers to speeds greater than 6,700 mph and is mainly used in astrophysics. Hypervelocity objects can vaporize on impact and pose a danger to spacecraft. Controlled experiments in labs explore the properties of substances at high speeds. Hypervelocity stars move faster than they should and are hard to spot, with their origins still being studied.
The term “hypervelocity” is used to describe a very high speed, usually defined as a speed greater than 6,700 miles per hour (3,000 meters per second). As you can imagine, a very large amount of energy is required to achieve hypervelocity, and this term occurs mainly in the field of astrophysics. Here on Earth, hypervelocity can be achieved in a laboratory under very tightly controlled conditions, and some physicists do just that to study the properties of hypervelocity objects.
For people interested in space, hypervelocity is a topic of immense interest, with some very real ramifications. Objects in space can go hypervelocity, and when they do, interesting things tend to happen. One problem that occurs is that when a hypervelocity object collides with something, it tends to vaporize and can vaporize anything it hits as well. Also, solids such as metals can behave strangely at hyperspeed, behaving more like liquids.
An environment in which the motions of very high-speed objects are studied includes studies of impact sites such as craters created by meteors. A very small meteor can do an incredible amount of damage, which is concerning since meteors occasionally hit the Earth. Hypervelocity also has implications for space travel, as spacecraft could be endangered if hit by high-speed moving objects. These collisions could result in substantial damage or destruction of a spacecraft.
Controlled experiments in the laboratory are used to explore the properties of different substances at high speeds and to see what happens in particular in collisions. These experiments require special preparations, facilities and procedures to be conducted safely. NASA is an example of an organization that has facilities where such studies can be performed.
Physicists have also taken note of a type of star known as a hypervelocity star, which moves much faster than it should. The researchers speculated that such stars could exist in the 1980s, suggesting they could be created through the interaction of a binary star system with a black hole. If a star is pulled into the black hole, it could act like a slingshot, hurling the paired star into space at high speed. These high-velocity stars are hard to spot, and when they are, researchers are usually interested in learning more about their origins. In some cases, the reasons behind the acceleration of the motion of a particular star have not been identified.
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