The Blackbird Lowerlevel_01

That’s a cool-looking plane. It is the fastest plane ever built. It has flown from New York to London in just under two hours. It takes a normal jet over six hours to make the same trip. The SR-71 was able to travel three times the speed of sound.

The SR-71 Blackbird was built over 50 years ago. There was a need for a very fast plane. Many planes back then were made to drop bombs or shoot during war. This plane had a different reason for being made. The Blackbird was made to fly over areas and take pictures. These pictures helped find enemies during war.

So how was this plane made? They used their knowledge of matter.

Most planes were made of steel and aluminum. The SR-71 is made from titanium. Titanium is lighter than both aluminum and steel. Lightweight for a plane means the faster the plane can change speeds or accelerate.

Titanium is the perfect metal for these high speeds. It has the ability to handle higher temperatures than steel or aluminum. Titanium has a very high melting point compared to other metals. That means it will not melt until the temperatures are really high. Titanium has a very high melting point that is above 1650 °C. 

Titanium sounds like the perfect metal to build airplanes with. For the SR-71, it was important the material was light, strong, and could withstand a lot of heat. The cars we drive are made of steel. Cars do not need to withstand such high temperatures. Steel is also easier to build a car with. It is also much cheaper than titanium. It would not make sense to make cars from titanium.