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NASA’s X-59 supersonic jet is cleared for final assembly
NASA's experimental X-59 jet, which could make supersonic commercial travel a reality, has been cleared for final assembly. The X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft, designed by Lockheed Martin, could take its first flight as soon as 2021.
NASA unveils stunning images of merging supersonic shockwaves
NASA has developed a new imaging technique that let them capture, for the first time, the interaction of shockwaves from two supersonic jets. They were taken by a new, high-speed camera system developed to help NASA design a supersonic airplane that produces much quieter sonic booms. "We never dreamed that it would be this clear, this beautiful," said NASA physical scientist J.T. Heineck.
Lockheed Martin is building a quiet supersonic jet for NASA
Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works team has started building the first part of the X-59 Quiet Supersonic Technology aircraft, which could make supersonic commercial travel a reality. The aerospace company is building the jet for NASA's Low-Boom Flight Demonstration program, now that the space agency has committed to a three-year development timeline. Lockheed X-59's long, slender design will allow it to be relatively quiet, creating a sound only as loud as a car door closing whenever it transitions to supersonic speeds. Since it will fly at an altitude of 55,000 feet and at speeds of 940 mph, it's expected to be barely audible.
