Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 17

Flight is on the Horizon
This artist's concept of NASA's QueSST jet reflects the
airplane's final configuration following years of research
and design engineering. The jet is now under construction
by Lockheed Martin. (Image: Lockheed Martin)

The plane's design
research speed will be
Mach 1.42, or 940 mph,
flying at 55,000 feet.
At the successful conclusion of
these flights, NASA will officially
take delivery of the aircraft from
Lockheed Martin in early 2023. At
that time, NASA will fly the X-59 within
a supersonic test range to prove the technology works as designed, aircraft performance is robust in real atmospheric
conditions, and the X-59 is safe for operation in the National Airspace System.
NASA will measure the sound of the
sonic thumps in the Mojave Desert
using cutting-edge technology: a stateof-the-art ground recording system.
NASA has contracted Crystal Instruments of Santa Clara, CA to deliver a
recording system for the high-fidelity
sonic boom - and soon to be, a quiet
sonic thump - that is capable of providing the data necessary for the
agency to validate the acoustic signature of the X-59.
NASA will utilize the Crystal Instruments Ground Recording System
(CI-GRS) to gather time, waveform, and
spectral data related to sonic booms and
sonic thumps. The CI-GRS will also feature the ability for NASA to install custom software and algorithms to perform
various specialized operations for realtime sonic thump analysis.

The agency will use the X-59 to gather
data on how effective the low-boom technology is in terms of public acceptance
by flying over select U.S. cities beginning
in 2024 and asking residents to share
their response to the sound the X-59 produces. NASA will then provide a complete analysis of the community response
data to U.S. and international regulators
for their use in considering new soundbased rules regarding quiet supersonic
flight over land. Such rules could enable
new commercial cargo and passenger
markets in faster-than-sound air travel.
Visit www.nasa.gov/X59

Virgin
Galactic's
Mach 3 Aircraft
Virgin Galactic Holdings is collaborating with Rolls-Royce to design and
develop engine propulsion technology
for its high-speed commercial aircraft
that will soar at speeds beyond Mach 3
- faster than the average Mach-2 cruising speed of the original Concorde.
The company is working with the
FAA to ensure that designs can make a
practical impact from the start. Virgin
Galactic - with representatives from

This image captures a moment from a computational fluid dynamics simulation of NASA's X-59 aircraft concept during supersonic flight. The colors shown on the aircraft indicate surface pressure,
with lower pressures in blue and higher pressures in red. The colors shown in the airspace surrounding the aircraft indicate airflow velocity, ranging from blue (indicating zero velocity) to higher velocities in red. (Image: NASA/James C. Jensen)

Tech Briefs, May 2021

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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021

Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Intro
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Sponsor
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Cov1
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Cov2
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 1
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 2
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 3
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 4
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 5
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 6
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 7
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 17
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 55
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 56
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Cov3
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - Cov4
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-Cov1
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-Cov2
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-1
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-2
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-3
Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-4
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-19
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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - PIT-Cov3
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