NASA's Hypervelocity Free Flight Test Range

[Webster]

NASA Ames hosts a massive gun designed to throw tiny spacecraft models at orbital speeds to verify the aerodynamics of potential reentry vehicles. This is the only such facility in the US, not only can it project models at over 17000 miles per hour, it can take shadowgraph images showing shockwave structures and other details.

00:03 Hulloooo
01:25 Introducing The Hypervelocity Free Flight Range
03:45 The Gun
07:04 The Shooting Gallery
11:32 The Control Room
16:32 The Counterflow Shock Tunnel