Speed of Light to Mach Number Converter
Mach 874,030.49
Understanding Speed of Light and Mach Numbers
Speed of Light (c)
The speed of light (c) is a universal physical constant that represents the maximum speed at which all conventional matter and information in the universe can travel. It equals exactly 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum.
Mach Number
The Mach number represents the ratio of an object's speed to the speed of sound in the surrounding medium. Mach 1 equals the speed of sound (approximately 343 meters per second at sea level), while Mach 5+ is considered hypersonic.
Speed Classifications
- Subsonic: Below Mach 1
- Transonic: Approximately Mach 1
- Supersonic: Mach 1 to Mach 5
- Hypersonic: Above Mach 5