Think that fancy new suppressor you bought will “silence” your gun? Think again. There’s more to it than just that. But let’s start at the beginning. There are two components to gunshot noise: muzzle blast and sonic booms.

We usually think of muzzle blast as some kind of noise associated with exploding (or technically speaking, fast burning) powder, but it’s not. The noise we associate with muzzle blast is a result of pressure differential. A larger volume of high-pressure gas exits the muzzle all at once and escapes into the surrounding low-pressure air. That creates what we perceive as noise. That’s why airguns, that have no burning or exploding propellants, make noise when you shoot them. That’s also why so many of them come with moderators (suppressors) pre-installed.

Read the rest: The Sound of Silencers | The Armory Life

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