I’ve never really understood how something travelling faster than teh speed of sound causes a sonic boom.
Secondary, like when man first broker the sound barrier, did the scientists *know* a sonic boom would occur, or was it a surprise and they all were like “WTF was that, did we just break something”?
Thirdly, is a sonic boom guaranteed when something breaks the sound barrier, or do they sometimes not happen?
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One correction to several people in this thread. The sonic boom is NOT made ONLY as the aircraft passes thru the speed of sound. Any supersonic object is CONSTANTLY making a sonic boom.
Just like a boat is constantly making a wave, so too is a supersonic aircraft constantly making a sonic boom. The wave/boom just tends to only hit you once.
To answer OP’s third question. Yes, every supersonic object will create a boom. But depending on the size and speed and noise generation, may not be that loud. The crack of a whip is a sonic boom, as the tip of the whip goes supersonic. The zip of a bullet flying by is also a sonic boom.
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