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How a Top Fuel Dragster Works

By: Cherise Threewitt  | 

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Author's Note: How a Top Fuel Dragster Works

When I started to research this article, I had to go to the beginning. I'd heard of nitromethane, of course (thanks mostly to repeated viewings of "The Fast and the Furious") but I didn't know it went by other names. The National Hot Rod Association site is a little outdated, but a nice guy in the marketing office was happy to provide me with some updated statistics. Attaining such a speed in a car is a little mind-blowing, to tell the truth, because of air resistance and traction and the laws of physics. I've gone about half that fast before, but I was falling through the sky with an as-yet-undeployed parachute on my back.

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