1,000 metres per second
3,600 km/hSpeed · definition
The quantity is exact as entered. Comparisons use the clearly stated specimen, model or nominal measurement.
Speed
Just how fast is 1,000 metres per second?
Air & orbit
1,000 m/s
DISTANCE IN ONE SECOND
1,000 metres per second
The quantity is exact as entered.
3,600 km/hSpeed
0
1 km in 1 s
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is a long-range, high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft developed for the United States Air Force during the Cold War.
3,528 km/hRepresentative cruise speed
0
980 m in 1 s
Each track shows distance covered in the same second. The small illustrations identify the movers; their sizes are schematic.
A little perspective
1,000 metres per second is about 1.02 times the cruise speed of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.
Measurements, assumptions & sources +
1,000 metres per second
Speed: 3,600 km/h; definition.
The quantity is exact as entered. Comparisons use the clearly stated specimen, model or nominal measurement.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
Representative cruise speed: 3,528 km/h; specified; range 3,240 km/h–3,600 km/h.
A rounded SR-71 reference: 32.7 m long, 16.9 m span, about 78 t maximum takeoff mass and roughly 980 m/s at high-speed cruise. Mission profile changes speed and mass.
NASA Armstrong — SR-71 Blackbird
The marked representative cruise speed is calibrated. Unmeasured illustration details are representative.
Measurement details
Why these numbers?
Compare 1,000 metres per second with the cruise speed of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. The notes below explain how each value was chosen.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
3,528 km/hRepresentative cruise speed · specified · range 3,240 km/h–3,600 km/h
A rounded SR-71 reference: 32.7 m long, 16.9 m span, about 78 t maximum takeoff mass and roughly 980 m/s at high-speed cruise. Mission profile changes speed and mass.
- Comparing
- Speed ↔ Representative cruise speed
- Relative size
- 1,000 metres per second is about 1.02 times the cruise speed of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. 1,000 metres per second is approximately 2.04% greater than the cruise speed of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.
How to read the visual
The diagram uses the recorded measurements. Details outside the marked spans do not set the scale.
- We use 3,528 km/h for the cruise speed of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird; the recorded range is 3,240 km/h–3,600 km/h.
- The recorded ranges overlap, so the ordering can vary even though the central values differ.
Speed is distance per unit time; it does not specify the total distance travelled.
3,600 km/hkilometres per hour
2,236.9 mphmiles per hour
Mach 2.9155Mach
0.00033356% of c (3.3356 × 10⁻⁶c)speed of light
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