How far can a gun bullet travel?

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I have seen this warning printed on boxes of .22LR (long rifle) cartridges:

People often underestimate how powerful ammunition can be.

Yeah, it has that on all boxes of .22LR I've seen.

Then, you only need about 300/400 FPS. to penetrate a human skull (forensics textbook)....

I once did the calculations (without air resistance) and I calculated that you could get a bullet from Dover into France with ease.

The muzzle velocity of a 44 magnum is about 1850 feet per second, while that of a 7.62 mm rifle is about 3500 feet per second.

If we were to fire the 44 at an angle of 45 degrees then the vertical velocity will be 1308 feet per second and the horizontal velocity will be also 1308 feet per second. this works out at 392.4 meters per second.

as KE = (mvv)/2

and PE = mgh

so mgh = (mvv) / 2

gh = (mvv) / 2m = (vv) / 2

then h = (vv) / 2g

Assume g is 10 m per s per s

So the bullet will climb to a height of 7699 meters

As the bullet has to slow down at a rate of 10 m per second per second from 392.4 meters per second to zero, then it will take 39.24 seconds to reach the top of its flight, in this time it will have moved 15.4 x 1000 meters forwards. So leaving out the wind resistance I would expect a 44 to have a range of 30.8 km.

Can someone add the equations for wind resistance.

Oh dude wind resistance calcs for a bullet are bloody HARD! Bullet is never quite aimed pointy head into the trajectory, or worse it can tumble, it has grooves on the jacket from the rifling, turbulent air at the base, air temperature humidity and pressure affect the calculation... I was a physics major and I would NOT attempt to calculate this.

Speaking of bullets travelling great distances in vacuum... A high powered rifle bullet fired on the Moon would enter orbit!

Then there is also the fact that a supersonic bullet will further heat up from the friction of the air resistance not unlike a supersonic airplane. Because the bullet is not made from stainless steel, titanium alloys, carbon fiber and ceramic matrix composites and the like which have high tensile strength and high heat resistance and is instead made from, which asides from being soft and with a low melting point of 621F, the bullet will further deform while in flight which will further complicate wind resistance calcs for a bullet, and possibly render the idea impossible.

M109A6 - about 20 miles

During the Great War, the Germans had a rifled canon that could shoot a shell seventy five miles. The bombarded Paris using that gun.

ruveyn

Do you have a reference to the weapon? The highest record I could find was 46 miles (75 kms) set by a Denel G6-52L.

Paris Gun

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Gun

While this gun only had a 20 mile range, it packed a punch like no other: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_Annie

Now that we have strayed into the realm of large artillery, anyone remember Gerald Bull,
Project Babylon, Project HARP,and other Superguns?

What altitude are you shooting at? The higher the altitude, the lower the barometric pressure, and thus the air density. Theoretically a bullet shot in a high altitude area like Colorado should travel faster than one at sea level due to the lower air drag. The only way to avoid this without traveling is to shoot down-wind, but if the wind slows down or changes direction that will complicate things.

Sell all guns and buy food and education for poor children!

Or use the guns to kill animals to make food

LOL. Sell them to whom? And what would they do with their newly acquired guns to us the disarmed ones?

The real world is not a fricken fairytale.

Yeah using the guns to hunt with would be a better idea. Then you have food, and possibly can sell some of the meat to markets or at a market yourself.

Also, there's always the business of a shooting range. In states where it is illegal to carry a gun in public or to enter a building with one, a range would be popular.

And, if the proprietor of the range so wishes, a percentage of the profits could go to helping third world countries and other people who are having bad times.