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Week 3 Timeline
Ernst Mach born, Ernst Waldfried Josef Wenzel Mach on 18 February 1838 later passing a day after his birthday on 19 February 1916, was a physicist and philosopher that was most known for his attributions to the “Doppler theory”. The physicist Christian Doppler discovered that the frequency of a wave depends on the speed of the object and the view of the person observing. Mach was able to build off this idea by stating all waves (light, speed, and sound) are affected. -
Shockwaves
He was able to prove his theory by placing a whistle on the end of a rotating vertical tube while an observer stayed in one place. He was able to show change in pitch/frequency based off the way the sound waves traveled. During 1887 Ernst Mach remodeled a camera to capture a visual of shockwaves in projectiles. Working alongside Peter Salcher, a physicist and photographer, they were able to capture a photo and confirm conical shockwaves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLrHnndL3D4. -
Einstein's Proof
After accepting empiricism, Ernst found it hard to believe in atoms, something he could not see or prove. During the late 1800’s, early 1900’s, Mach was not the only one to disagree with the existence of atoms. Even after Einstein’s proof of atoms in 1905, Mach still denied the possibility. His other point was, how can an atom be made of nothing but make something? -
Mach Speed
This discovery helped in making things aerodynamic and have less wind drag. His discovery is why we use the phrase “Mach Speed” the literal term is “Mach Number”. Mach Number is used to describe the speed of planes and projectiles to the speed of sound. (Mach Number was named by Jakob Ackeret an aeronautical engineer.)