The Bristol Mercury is a nine-cylinder, air-cooled, single-row, piston radial engine. Designed by Roy Fedden of the Bristol Aeroplane Company it was used to power both civil and military aircraft of the 1930s and 1940s. Developed from the earlier Jupiter engine, later variants could produce 800 horsepower (600 kW) from its capacity of 1,500 cubic inches (25 L) by use of a geared supercharger.
Almost 21,000 engines were produced, with a number also being built in Europe under licence. At least three Bristol Mercuries remain airworthy in 2010, with other preserved examples on public display in aviation museums.
Read more about Bristol Mercury: Design and Development, Variants, Applications, Survivors, Engines On Display
Famous quotes containing the words bristol and/or mercury:
“It’s of a rich squire in Bristol doth dwell,
There are ladies of honour that love him well,
But all was in vain, in vain was said,
For he was in love with a charming milkmaid.”
—Unknown. Squire and Milkmaid; or, Blackberry Fold (l. 1–4)
“The mercury sank in the mouth of the dying day.
What instruments we have agree
The day of his death was a dark cold day.”
—W.H. (Wystan Hugh)