X-59 Unveiled: The Supersonic Aircraft Set to Make Sonic Booms a Whisper of the Past
By Karmactive Team
A new age in supersonic travel is being heralded by NASA's X-59, which was unveiled at Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works and promises overland trips with no noise disturbance.
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The goal of the X-59's design is to solve long-standing noise issues in supersonic aircraft by converting disruptive sonic booms into gentle thumps.
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NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy highlights the low-noise breakthrough of the X-59 and how it is changing the face of supersonic flying.
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Reducing noise disruptions is greatly aided by the aircraft's characteristic long, pointed nose and windowless cockpit, which is outfitted with a cutting-edge External Vision System.
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Lockheed Martin's Greg Ulmer highlights the X-59's ability to combine creativity and teamwork despite the pandemic's difficulties
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Robert Pearce of NASA examines the X-59's voyage and connects it to Chuck Yeager's groundbreaking 1947 discovery of the sound barrier.
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The goal of the X-59 experiment is to collect public feedback on its reduced-boom flights in order to impact upcoming laws governing supersonic land travel.
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Melroy emphasizes how the External Vision System might serve as an inspiration for future aircraft designs and stresses how important it is given the limited visibility in the cockpit.
Photo source - Google
With its combination of speed and never-before-seen quiet, the X-59 is set to change air travel—that is, until community reaction and regulatory judgments are made.