Although when you think of NASA, you immediately think about space, Earth, the Moon, the solar system, and other astronomical things, NASA does so much more than just send astronauts to space.
NASA recently unveiled that they were reviving their interest in creating a new class of airplanes known as X-planes, which would be significantly more futuristic, and now it would seem they're acting on their interests after all.
Among the futuristic qualities that NASA would implement into existing aircraft designs are improved air flow and aerodynamics to improve fuel efficiency, as well as lower sound output as not to disrupt the homes and communities underneath the skies.
The latter is apparently one of NASA’s core interests, because as The Guardian reports, NASA is already sketching up plans for a ‘low-boom’ supersonic jet that could come in handy for the United States military among other uses.
“It’s worth noting that it’s been almost 70 years since Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1 as part of our predecessor agency’s high speed research. Now we’re continuing that supersonic X-plane legacy with this preliminary design award for a quieter supersonic jet with an aim toward passenger flight,” NASA head Charles Bolden said in a statement for the agency.
As a result of being a ‘low-boom’ aircraft, such a vehicle would not make such an ear-shattering crack in the skies above those around to witness it, but rather, it would make a softer thump that would be more difficult to discern from other noises, and wouldn’t disturb calm housing developments or the everyday hustle and bustle of the world.
Preliminary designs for such an aircraft are being called QueSST (Quiet Supersonic Technology).
If it comes to fruition, it would be the first of the X-plane series to be created using the additional budget money that NASA has obtained from the government and it could change the way we think about modern aircrafts forever.
Source: The Guardian