The space agency, along with Lockheed Martin, has begun construction on the highly anticipated the X-59 Quiet Supersonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft, known as the “son of Concorde”. The supersonic jet will be able to travel at an altitude of 55,000 feet and at a speed of about 940mph – breaking the sound barrier in the process. NASA and Lockheed Martin will publicly test a prototype to see if it does live up to its billing as being ultra-quiet.
One of the reasons the Concorde failed was partly because the sonic boom it created when it broke the sound barrier caused distress among livestock and minor damages to buildings.
This led to Concorde being banned to fly over the mainland US, which was a massive contribution to the airline going bust in 2003.
However, the X-59 may have solved the issue.
Ed Haering, an aerospace engineer at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, said: “With the X-59 you’re still going to have multiple shockwaves because of the wings on the aircraft that create lift and the volume of the plane.
“But the airplane’s shape is carefully tailored such that those shockwaves do not combine.
“Instead of getting a loud boom-boom, you’re going to get at least two quiet thump-thump sounds, if you even hear them at all.”
Peter Iosifidis, Low Boom Flight Demonstrator program manager Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, added: “The start of manufacturing on the project marks a great leap forward for the X-59 and the future of quiet supersonic commercial travel.
“As we enter into the manufacturing phase, the aircraft structure begins to take shape, bringing us one step closer to enabling supersonic travel for passengers around the world.”
NASA and Lockheed Martin have ploughed a total of £290million into the project and believe tests with passengers could begin in 2021.