Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

A Sonic Boom

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for August 19, 2007 is “A Sonic Boom,” an image. It is credited to Credit: Ensign John Gay, USS Constellation , US Navy. The original explanation runs about 153 words.

A Sonic Boom
Credit: Ensign John Gay, USS Constellation , US Navy Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“Is this what a sonic boom looks like? When an airplane travels at a speed faster than sound, density waves of sound emitted by the plane cannot precede the plane, and so accumulate in a cone behind the plane.”

— APOD editors, August 19, 2007

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
August 19, 2007
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Ensign John Gay, USS Constellation , US Navy
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 153 words

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On this day: August 19 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.