Stresses and strains
Question: I have heard that during flight Concorde expands by a few
centimetres in length because of the heat generated by friction as it passes
through the atmosphere at high speeds. This must surely put great strain on its
superstructure. What design features were incorporated to compensate for this
expansion?
Answer: Due to kinetic heating caused by supersonic airflow over the skin,
the thermal effects on the airframe were a major consideration in the design of
Concorde.
The temperatures on the airframe vary from 128 °C at the nose to 90
°C at the tail, with the…
