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Could someone tell me what sound barrier is and what it means to break the sound barrier (in really simple terms)?

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/HBASE/sound/soubar.html

Thanks :)

In the years before 1950, it was very difficult for airplanes to fly faster than the speed of sound because of shock waves that form in front of the wings and propellers that greatly increased the aerodynamic drag. Control of the airplane was also difficult because of instabilities that arise near the speed of sound. By going to swept-back wings and jet engines, and getting an extra boost by starting in a dive, it was possible to go faster than sound with the Bell X-1, the plane that Chuck Yeager flew. Nowadays is it no big deal for military jets and the SST to exceed the sound "barrier", but mopst planes still fly more economically below the speed of sound.

Certainly! The sound barrier is a term used to describe the physical limit of how fast an object can travel through the air without causing a loud sonic boom. It is caused by the buildup of pressure waves around the object as it approaches the speed of sound.

To understand breaking the sound barrier, first, let's talk about the speed of sound. Sound travels through the air in the form of waves, and its speed depends on factors like temperature and altitude. On average, at sea level and at a comfortable temperature, sound travels at around 343 meters per second (or 1235 kilometers per hour).

Breaking the sound barrier refers to traveling faster than the speed of sound. When an object reaches the speed of sound (also known as Mach 1), the pressure waves that usually travel ahead of it start to bunch up around the object. As the object pushes through these waves, it creates a shock wave, which results in a sudden increase in pressure. This pressure causes a loud noise called a sonic boom.

So, breaking the sound barrier means going faster than the speed of sound and creating a sonic boom. It's an exciting achievement in the field of aviation and has been accomplished by various supersonic aircraft.