What is the ballistic range for TR and NC?

[Firearms]

Originally Posted by Xyntech

and strike at speeds similar to their muzzle exit velocity.

Really?

[Aberdash]

Originally Posted by Firearms

Really?

The velocity starts to drop as soon as the bullet leaves the muzzle.

edit: That is to say he is full of shit. The velocity would never even come close.

[Timithos]

[QUOTE=Mihn;799147]1) If I fire a tank shell at someone on top of a hill and miss (too high). How far would that shell travel? Presumably it could go quite a distance and potentially hit someone kilometers away (which would be cool).[QUOTE]

Yes, it will potentially, and unlikely, hit someone. And obviously we don't know how far.

This brings up an old problem that we have to educate the noobs on. Check your targets, and don't blindly spam your fire, especially with something as powerful as a tank.

[Firearms]

Originally Posted by Aberdash

The velocity starts to drop as soon as the bullet leaves the muzzle.

edit: That is to say he is full of shit. The velocity would never even come close.

Had a quick read. If the bullet can maintain it's spin it will "keep" it's velocity. As soon as it stops spinning = Tumbling, it's fecked.
When I think of firing in to the air (it's usually over her back tbh) I think of acute parabola's which cant be conducive to maintaining spinage......a smoother arc, maybe....

[Aberdash]

Originally Posted by Firearms

Had a quick read. If the bullet can maintain it's spin it will "keep" it's velocity. As soon as it stops spinning = Tumbling, it's fecked.
When I think of firing in to the air (it's usually over her back tbh) I think of acute parabola's which cant be conducive to maintaining spinage......a smoother arc, maybe....

The bullet would go up and eventually stop. It would then start to drop at an increasing speed until it reaches its terminal velocity. There is no way it would be anywhere near 1000+ ft/s

[noxious]

Originally Posted by Firearms

Had a quick read. If the bullet can maintain it's spin it will "keep" it's velocity. As soon as it stops spinning = Tumbling, it's fecked.
When I think of firing in to the air (it's usually over her back tbh) I think of acute parabola's which cant be conducive to maintaining spinage......a smoother arc, maybe....

Originally Posted by Xyntech

That's only true if the bullet is fired perfectly straight up, which pretty much never happens. If it's even slightly off, it will still travel in a balistic arc and strike at speeds similar to their muzzle exit velocity.

This is patently false. In a vacuum you are correct. Anywhere else friction from air resistance will slow the round down to terminal velocity regardless of the initial firing angle. The only reason that a round fired at a shallow angle will never slow to terminal velocity is because it will hit the ground first. Regardless, it will still slow substantially.

As for the 'it spins, so it won't slow down' myth, this may improve the ballistic coefficient, but you can't escape the laws of thermodynamics; anything that experiences friction will lose kinetic energy to friction.

Source. Note also that sniper rounds have far superior ballistic coefficients when compared to rounds found in other weapons (necessary to be effective at long ranges), so most projectiles will lose even more speed to friction.

[Firearms]

Originally Posted by noxious

As for the 'it spins, so it won't slow down' myth, this may improve the ballistic coefficient, but you can't escape the laws of thermodynamics; anything that experiences friction will lose kinetic energy to friction.

Hearin' you. I kind of hoped "Keep" in inverted comma's " "" " kind of meant that was a given, but I was wrong.
I reckon the spinage line has it down too - Less about the theory and more about the fact that if it ain't spinning on the way down, it's tumbling, and if it's tumbling it's fecked.
I miss watching mythbuster
/tear

[Baneblade]

The terminal velocity in a pure virgin vacuum is zero... when the objects collide. Till that point acceleration is constant.

As for bullets killing people when they 'return', it depends almost entirely on the type of round used. Many bullets are not as aerodynamic than others, a 9mm hollowpoint for example, and will have far lower practical terminal velocities than say an AK-47's 7.62x39mm.

[Mihn]

Thanks all for the comments, guess we'll wait and see about #1.

As for my slightly more playful #2, I just wanted to check there'd be no danger to comrades as I shoot celebration rounds into the sky upon pushing VS and NC back into their Warp Gates (again)

Anyway, found this interesting BBC Article on the subject:

"...According to a 1962 study, .30 calibre rounds can reach terminal velocities of 300 feet (91m) per second as they fall. More recent research has indicated that 200 feet (61m) per second is enough to penetrate the skull..."

and from the same article

"...In 2010 a Turkish bridegroom killed three relatives when he fired an AK-47 at his own wedding..."

So in summary, the futuristic helmets should be able to deal with this, but in the meantime I shall be avoiding Turkish weddings as a precautionary measure.