Thrust SSC - for now the current World Land Speed Record car
Thrust SSC is a British-designed and built World Land Speed Record car.
Thrust SSC holds the current World Land Speed Record which was set on October 15, 1997, by accomplishing a speed of 763 mph. By doing so, the super sonic car became the first land vehicle to officially break the sound barrier.
Designed by Richard Noble, Jeremy Bliss, Ron Ayres and Glynne Bowsher, Thrust SSC was driven by the RAF fighter pilot Squadron Leader Andy Green in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, USA. It is 16.5 m (54 ft) long, 3.7 m (12 ft) wide and weighs 10.5 tons (10.7 t).
Noble was also the driving force behind the cars predecessor,
Thrust 2 which broke the World Land Speed Record in 1983.
The car was powered by two Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan engines, as used in British F-4 Phantom II jet fighters. The twin engines developed a thrust of 223 kN (50,000 lbf) and burned around 18 litres per second.
Thrust SSC can now be seen in the Museum’s Spirit of Speed Gallery.