Can a train whistle sound be passed coast to coast?

Question

An engineer in Maine sounds his horn, how long and how many locomotives to pass the same sound to California?

Answer 1

What have you been smokin??

Answer 2

1 Telephone Should Do It,Or A Recording....

Answer 3

Realistically I don't believe it it at all possible.  Whilst I live in the UK, I have a very limited knowledge of US railroads.  If what I understand you to be asking, it would require an endless stream of trains (which DOES NOT happen) and grade crossings at least every 1/4 mile or less (again, I believe this to be impossible) as I believe US railroad rules require engineers to sound the horn a 1/4 mile BEFORE reaching the grade crossing.  Anyone else care to put their penny's worth in???

Answer 4

There was a time when locomotive engineers did pass signals from one engine to another, usually when a "road engine", or the engine at the front of the train, needed to convey information to a second or third engine within the train operating as "helper" engines.

A combination of short and long sounds conveyed the necessary

information.

So, assuming that the whistle could be heard at a distance of three miles, with roughly 3,000 miles between Maine and California, the answer would be that it would take 999 engines to pass the signal coast to coast.

The speed of sound is not a constant as it is affected by temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and wind.  Lets assume in this instance we round it off to 700 miles per hour.  Again with a benchmark of 3,000 miles, it should take 4.28 minutes to pass the signal from coast to coast.