nose cone

noun

: a protective cone constituting the forward end of an aerospace vehicle

Examples of nose cone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That projectile, its nose cone wheeled to the launchpad by a bicycle, put a small payload 124 miles above the Earth. Alex Travelli, New York Times, 4 July 2023 The aerodynamic modifications to the big Dodge included a nearly 2-foot-tall rear wing, a flush rear window, and a longer, sloped nose cone. Ben Stewart, Popular Mechanics, 13 Apr. 2023 Lockheed Martin engineer Scott Zink said the plane takes many of the unique design elements from past supersonic jets such as the Concorde, including a very long nose cone. Dallas News, 11 Feb. 2022 Multiple sources identified the nose cone as likely coming from a Kinzhal missile, which officially goes by the unwieldy designation 9-S-7760, and is codenamed the ‘Killjoy’ by NATO. Popular Mechanics, 9 May 2023 The first piece of debris discovered was the vessel’s nose cone—part of a large debris field containing the front end of the pressure hull. Alex Christian, WIRED, 29 June 2023 Officials located the submersible’s nose cone and one end of its pressure hulls in a large debris field. Zoe Sottile, CNN, 24 June 2023 Paul Hankins, a salvage expert for the U.S. Navy, said five major pieces of debris from the Titan were found, including the nose cone, which was outside of the pressure hull. Alexandra E. Petri, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2023 The James Webb Space Telescope, for example, had to be designed to be folded so it could be stuffed into the nose cone of the Ariane 5 rocket that shot it to space. Christian Davenport, Washington Post, 17 Apr. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nose cone.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1949, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of nose cone was in 1949

Dictionary Entries Near nose cone

Cite this Entry

“Nose cone.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nose%20cone. Accessed 30 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

nose cone

noun
: a protective cone forming the forward end of a rocket or missile
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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