Uploaded March 2016 | Updated September 2026, 9 hours ago
A friend of mine made a ping pong ball canon that is powered by a vacuum in front of the ball and air rushing in to fill the vacuum from behind the ball. Through two different means it appears the ball breaks the speed of sound as it travels through and exits the tube.
Here are the calculations used to arrive at the speed of the ball.
Mass of the Ping Pong: 2.7g or .0027kg
Diameter of PP: 40mm or .04m
Area of PP: .0012566m2
Pressure: 24.33inHg or 11.91 psi or 8377.86kg/m2
Force on PP (p*a*g): 103.28N
Acceleration of PP: 38251.48 m/s2
Distance: 1.70m
Max Velocity: 360.63 m/sec or 807mph
A friend of mine made a ping pong ball canon that is powered by a vacuum in front of the ball and air rushing in to fill the vacuum from behind the ball. Through two different means it appears the ball breaks the speed of sound as it travels through and exits the tube.
Here are the calculations used to arrive at the speed of the ball.
Mass of the Ping Pong: 2.7g or .0027kg
Diameter of PP: 40mm or .04m
Area of PP: .0012566m2
Pressure: 24.33inHg or 11.91 psi or 8377.86kg/m2
Force on PP (p*a*g): 103.28N
Acceleration of PP: 38251.48 m/s2
Distance: 1.70m
Max Velocity: 360.63 m/sec or 807mph
