ramjetn.
/ˈramdʒɛt/, U.S. /ˈræmˌdʒɛt/ Aeronautics.
1. attributive. Designating a simple form of jet engine in which the air drawn in for combustion is compressed solely by the forward motion of the engine; relating to or equipped with such an engine.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > parts of aircraft > means of propulsion > [adjective] > types of jet engine
ramjet1942
pure-jet1944
propeller turbine1945
turbojet1945
turbopropeller1947
fan-lift1961
reheated1961
1942 in 29th Ann. Rep. U.S. Nat. Advisory Comm. Aeronaut. 1943 (1948) 407/2 An experimental investigation of an idealized ram-jet propulsion system was conducted in the..wind tunnel at the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory in March 1941.
1948 Times 2 Feb. 3/2 An aerial missile driven by a ‘ram-jet’ engine is reported, on its first flight over the desert at Inyokern, California, to have ‘far exceeded’ the speed of sound.
1980 J. C. Haldeman Perry's Planet ii. 19 It seems they used a modified ramjet, ion-drive ship.
1994 Flight Internat. (Nexis) 31 Aug. The bulk of Russian ramjet missiles have been long-range surface-to-air, surface-to-surface or air-to-surface weapons.
2006 Sci. Amer. (U.K. ed.) Aug. 42/1 A ramjet engine has just an air inlet, a combustor and a nozzle.
2. A jet of this type.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > machines which impart power > engine > internal-combustion engine > [noun] > jet > types of
jet turbine1878
ramjet1945
pulse jet1946
plasma engine1958
reaction jet1959
fan-jet1963
1945 Zanesville (Ohio) Signal 2 Aug. 12/2 Those which depend on outside air for combustion..such as turbo jets and ram jets, must handle vast amounts of air.
1955 Sci. Amer. Jan. 38/2 Probably the simplest helicopter built so far is the Hiller Hornet. It is powered by ramjets, mounted in the tips of the rotor blades.
1972 A. D. Foster Tar-Aiym Krang 100 The sound-absorbing material in its pit was further abetted by the layered glass of the building itself in muffling the scream of the rockets and ramjets.
2002 BusinessWeek 15 July 91/3 Unlike ordinary jet engines, ramjets don't have a turbofan to suck in air.
Compounds
Forming parasynthetic adjectives, as ramjet-powered, ramjet-propelled.
ΚΠ
1946 Dunkirk (N.Y.) Evening Observer 6 Nov. 10/3 Modern aerial warfare brought from the skies such terror as the German V-2 rockets and ram-jet propelled ‘buzz bombs’.
1948 Bradford (Pa.) Era 1 Jan. 11/1 Other aviation achievements included a ram jet-powered helicopter, jet-powered bombers [etc.].
1957 Jane's Fighting Ships 1957–58 439/3 The ramjet-propelled ‘Talos’ is capable of engaging both supersonic and subsonic targets.
1999 Pop. Sci. June 74/1 Space Access plans to build a ramjet-powered aerospacecraft as big as a Boeing 747.
2002 M. A. Lorell et al. Going Global? v. 162 The European Meteor consortium offered a highly advanced, new-generation long-range ramjet-powered missile concept.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1942