On Thursday, a small team from the University of Queensland launched its second rocket within a week to set the stage for faster, cheaper air travel. From its launch pad in Woomera, Australia, HyShot IV carried a scramjet engine over 190 miles skyward--the goal being to help the scramjet gain enough speed on its return to ignite for six seconds before a planned crash landing. It was hoped the engine would reach a a speed of Mach 8, eight times the speed of sound, or about 5,000 miles per hour. The launch tested a scramjet engine with an advanced fuel injector developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
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