Rainbow dash's "top speed"

[That Colt 42]

What everybody is saying about rainbow's top speed annoys the buck out of me, I mean having a single pony being that fast compaired to everyone else is annoying. People need to stop trying to calculate her speed, just think of it like this, she goes really fast and a big boom happens end of story, we don't even know if a sonic rainboom is the exact same as a normal sonic boom. She aspires to join the wonderbolts but is portrayed as being better than them! I mean really?! Sorry if I sound a bit harsh but it truly does annoy me, I do recon if you asked the writers about her speed they would say its not as mind blowing as the calculations show.

[False Perception 482]

Actually, science says she can hit Mach 10. There, end of story. I for one agree with you, it's a cartoon and it's silly to go so in-depth. BUT, it does show the dedication of the fandom.

[That Colt 42]

I don't see the calculations as cannon, I mean there insane and when writing the episode the writers would not have taken any calculations into account at all, I would say they probably saw it as rd just going slightly over the speed of sound, everything else is just effects that make her seem faster than she seems, if the calculations were true she would be dead, as she is definitely NOT invincible. I would like to see an ep where rd is beaten in a race by a very modest pony, and she has to learn to deal with the fact that she's not the best there is.

[silvadel 1,393]

Rainbow Dash is shown to have about twice as much wing power as any other pony before training. Assuming she gained less than the other pegasi from the training regimine lets still assume it is over 75% more on a straight line short track dash. It also seems that she has other abilities that help her fly -- I mean pegasi internalize their magic -- they can walk on clouds and fly by default even though the wings probably arent enough without magic. The fact that she has to sleep a lot probably comes from needing to replenish that vastly larger pool than most pegasi have. Personally I think she could do strong magic if she just had the focus(ie a unicorn horn is a focus -- oddly enough I think fluttershy has a focus with her eyes and this could be why she is not so good a natural flyer -- her internal magic is not focused at her wings and she is never really at full power as well) It would be interesting to see if Fluttershy could learn certain kinds of magic but that is another topic. Thing is though if she did it would reduce her ability to fly fast while winded from magic. At any rate, I think it is reasonable to think that rainbow dash can reach a speed at least 2 or 3 times faster than a normal pegasus given enough of a time to hit maximum speed. It is also notable that in every instance but the one at the wedding rainbow dash had to completely exert PLUS be going down with a gravity assist.

 

That she reaches the actual sound barrier actually seems likely to me. One other thought -- I dont think the slowest pegasus has much trouble catching the moving train.

[Acoustic Cloud 2,202]

actually watch "my little physics presentation" on youtube... he mathematically shows using kinematics

she is exceeding 13g's or something like that which would kill her

and that she is going about 1200meters/second

 

It's a good watch i recommend it!

[Musix 237]

Well, I'm sorry to annoy you with this excellent comment, But it's over Nine Thousand, at least...

[~Lawful Jordo~ 2,066]

The mach cone that forms around rainbow dash indicates that she indeed breaks the sound barrier. The angle of the cone proves that she is moving at approximately mach 10 speeds.

 

Science.

[~SadisticFluttershy~ 779]

"Rainbow Dash, you rock. Woohoo!"

 

All i can say is that shes fast enough to break the sound barrier and make a Sonic Rainboom! (:

[That Colt 42]

At Mach 10 speeds she would be ripped apart, the cone was just added for effect and would have been dawn without science in mind, I really do want to see another pony pull off a sonic rainboom, I mean seriously, rainbow dash is apparently the only one to have ever pulled it off. I'm sure there are bronies who want to see her lose a race...

[~Lawful Jordo~ 2,066]

At Mach 10 speeds she would be ripped apart, the cone was just added for effect and would have been dawn without science in mind, I really do want to see another pony pull off a sonic rainboom, I mean seriously, rainbow dash is apparently the only one to have ever pulled it off. I'm sure there are bronies who want to see her lose a race...

 

Considering dash has been shown to smash through trees and hit solid rock head on, I'm pretty sure she'd be fine against wind resistance.

 

She may look like a cuddly little thing, but she's resilient as all hell.

[That Colt 42]

(dunno how to quote) well ignoring her speed and duribility for now, I truly do want to see another pony pull off the Sonic rainboom, I should start a poll asking others if they wanna see another pony do a rainboom and what one, I think I would exclude fluttershy as I think too many bronies would go for her and the poll would be boring. I would also like to point out the fact that crashed and broke her wing in read it and weep.

Edit: Don't think I can make polls. I can make a simple thread tho

Edited August 14, 2012 by That Colt

[silvadel 1,393]

There is absolutely no way fluttershy could ever do a sonic rainboom. Her magic of form simply is not focused on her wings. It is focused on her eyes. Hence she can do a lot more things magically than a normal pegasus. That animal control stare for instance. Fastest flier? Never.

[Forlong 1,726]

Her top speed is Mach 10. 10 times the speed of sound. 12,360 kph...or 7,680 mph...3.4 kilometers a second...or 2.1 miles a second.

 

[That Colt 42]

Been a while since I posted in this thread... A sonic boom happens when one hits Mach 1, and the cone that appears around rainbow dash appears BEFORE she does it, BEFORE she hit Mach 1. Also there was this guy who was flung at Mach 1 when he ejected from his jet. He had massive injurys and even had his leg ripped off. Mach one would definately kill her. I would like rd a lot more if the rainboom was not as rare and if ponys before her pulled it off. The wonderbolts should have been pros at a sonic rainboom too.

[brian577 120]

Been a while since I posted in this thread... A sonic boom happens when one hits Mach 1, and the cone that appears around rainbow dash appears BEFORE she does it, BEFORE she hit Mach 1. Also there was this guy who was flung at Mach 1 when he ejected from his jet. He had massive injurys and even had his leg ripped off. Mach one would definately kill her. I would like rd a lot more if the rainboom was not as rare and if ponys before her pulled it off. The wonderbolts should have been pros at a sonic rainboom too.

 

You do realize you are trying to apply real world physics to a world filled with magical, talking ponies right? To say that Rainbow Dash can not exceed the sound barrier is like saying Twilight can not use telekinesis or Fluttershy can not walk on clouds. We have observed them doing all these things and Rainbow Dash been confirmed to be breaking the sound barrier by in show dialoge.

 

Pinkie: When a Pegasus like Rainbow Dash gets going soo fast... BOOM! A sonic boom and a rainbow can happen all at once!

 

Since sonic booms can only occur when an object breaks the sound barrier we must conclude that Rainbow Dash is indeed doing just that. As to your statement that a mach cone appears before reaching mach 1, that is wrong. It occurs between .8 and Mach 1 at transonic speeds.

Edited August 27, 2012 by brian577

[Acoustic Cloud 2,202]

yes i saw the kinematics proving she is doing about mach 10, basically, she would kill herself she goes so fast...

imagine what is like for rarity when she slams into her to catch her from her fall?

 

also judging by the angle of the cone, she is actually going faster than the speed of sound BEFORE she hits the sound barrier... so it's all cartoon logic, she is fast.

Edited August 27, 2012 by Rainbow Dashey

[That Colt 42]

also judging by the angle of the cone, she is actually going faster than the speed of sound BEFORE she hits the sound barrier... so it's all cartoon logic, she is fast.

 

This is exactly my point. I would like rainbow dash way more if her speed was not portraied as the fastest that ever existed. its implied that there were, and most likely still may be, ponys with Higher magic skill than twilight, even though she still is insanely talented. Edited August 27, 2012 by That Colt

[MarkKB 32]

You do realize you are trying to apply real world physics to a world filled with magical, talking ponies right?

Since sonic booms can only occur when an object breaks the sound barrier we must conclude that Rainbow Dash is indeed doing just that.

I find these statements somewhat paradoxical...

 

Serious mode on, and to address the OP, people trying to calculate the RD's top speed are just having fun. It's like complaining about Star Trek fans... well, it's like complaining that Memory Alpha and such exist, or Star Wars fans calculating the energy usage of the Death Star. Keep calm and let them have their fun.