NASA's and Lockheed Martin's X-59 experimental supersonic jet is unveiled during a roll-out ceremony in Palmdale, California, on January 12, 2024. The aircraft, a collaboration with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, is the centerpiece of NASA's Quesst mission, with the goal of minimizing cross-country travel time by making supersonic flight over land possible. The US banned supersonic travel over land for non-military aircraft in 1973 due to public concern about sonic booms over populated areas. NASA recently studied transoceanic supersonic flight, which could in theory shuttle passengers from New York City to London in under two hours.

Nearly exactly two decades ago, the Concorde pulled off its last flight. Now, NASA and Lockheed Martin have recently unveiled their novel supersonic jet, the X-59, which has been dubbed the "son of Concorde."

NASA X-59 Supersonic Jet

The quarter-billion-dollar supersonic jet unveiled by NASA is an experimental craft that the agency will make use of to prompt a novel frontier of supersonic jets for passengers.

The X-59 has a wingspan of 30 feet and is said to be able to cruise as far as 925 miles per hour, making it significantly faster than the speed of sound. It can do so while making sonic booms that are less disruptive to the communities under. This is due to innovative technologies, shaping, and design.

With the intense craft's unraveling, officials expect that it may revolutionize commercial air travel.

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Supersonic Flights

In the last half-century, the US, along with other countries, have prohibited supersonic flights due to the booms that are produced when planes are faster than the speed of sound (767 miles per hour).

The thin and tapered nose of the plane was thought to break shock waves that could lead to a sonic boom on usual aircraft. Moreover, its cockpit is situated halfway down the plane's length, which implies that pilots need to depend on camera monitors for operation.

This novel supersonic jet comes as part of the Quesst mission of NASA. The mission aims to offer data that could prompt regulators to rethink the ban. Pam Melroy, the Deputy Administrator of NASA, explains that this is a huge accomplishment that was only made possible through the ingenuity and efforts of NASA and the whole team behind the X-59's development.

Melroy adds that in just a couple of years, they were able to realize an ambitious idea. The X-59 will help alter current air travel and may bring people closer in lesser amounts of time.

The team behind the Quesst mission was shifting in order to handle preparations for the first flight of the craft, which is set to happen later this year. Officials say that following the maiden voyage, the jet will go on its first quiet supersonic flight.

Bob Pearce, the associate administrator for aeronautics researchers at the headquarters of NASA, explains that it is thrilling to think about the ambition level behind the mission as well as its possible benefits. NASA will be relaying the technology and data from this novel mission to regulators and the industry. By showing how quiet commercial supersonic travel is possible, they hope to unlock novel commercial markets for companies in the US and offer benefits to travelers all over the world.

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