Scientists shot a bullet at a bullet to see if they could simulate it accurately

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-07-22 09:01

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Only in America! US scientists have been shooting bullets at bullets while filming the whole thing on high-speed cameras, recording impact angles, speeds, deformation and the spread of shrapnel. They weren't just getting trigger-happy, though - this was all done to determine how accurately existing computer simulations of bullets hitting bullets reflect reality. The team found existing simulations using Johnson–Cook parameters - commonly used to simulate impacts and blasts - did not match their real-world experiments without alterations to several components of the simulation, including damage parameters, hardening, and erosion. The findings should help improve simulations of bullet impacts, the authors conclude.