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[return to "Ask HN: What scientific phenomenon do you wish someone would explain better?"]
1. JanisL+nt3[view] [source] 2020-04-28 02:17:25
>>qqqqqu+(OP)
I'd really love an explanation of what specific impulse is. I've looked it up a few times but the units seconds^-1 confuses me, what does this represent?
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2. TheFly+DI3[view] [source] 2020-04-28 05:05:34
>>JanisL+nt3
I think the unit is just one of those weird dimensional equivalences that pop up from time to time. E.g. fuel efficiency in cars is measured as distance / volume (of fuel consumed), so it's dimensionally equivalent to area^-2. But we don't use this because "1 mile per gallon" makes a lot more sense than "42.5 cm^-2".
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