Opening the Era of Quiet Supersonic Flight

NASA's experimental supersonic aircraft X-59 has successfully completed its second test flight. This flight is considered an important milestone in the development of next-generation aviation technology that enables supersonic flight without sonic boom.

The core of the X-59 project is to transform the explosive sonic boom produced by conventional supersonic passenger aircraft into a gentle sound. Sonic boom is a shockwave that occurs when an aircraft breaks the speed of sound (approximately 1,235 km/h), and it sounds like thunder on the ground, which is why flight over civilian areas is prohibited.

Solving the Challenge of Supersonic Flight

The Concorde, which operated in the 1960s-70s, was technically successful but lost economic viability and was retired because sonic boom issues restricted flight over land. Despite being able to reach New York-London in 3 hours and 30 minutes, supersonic flight was only possible over the Atlantic Ocean.

NASA developed a specially designed airframe shape to solve this problem. The X-59 aims to reduce sonic boom to a low noise level of "sonic thump" by dispersing shockwaves through its long, pointed nose and unique wing configuration.

Significance of the Test Flight

This second flight is a preparatory stage ahead of full-scale supersonic flight testing, verifying the basic performance confirmed in the maiden flight. NASA plans to confirm the following through multiple future test flights:

• Actual measurement of designed noise reduction effects
• Stability at various altitudes and speeds
• Ground noise impact assessment

Once successful testing is completed, NASA plans to conduct community response testing to survey actual residents' noise reactions over several U.S. cities. This data will be used as a basis for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to review regulations on supersonic civilian aircraft flight over land.

A New Turning Point for the Aviation Industry

If the X-59 project succeeds, long-haul flights like Seoul-New York, which take 6-7 hours, could be shortened to 3-4 hours. This has the potential to change not only time savings but also international business and tourism patterns.

Currently, several private aircraft manufacturers are participating in developing next-generation supersonic passenger aircraft, and NASA's research achievements are expected to become the technical foundation for these commercialization projects. However, challenges such as fuel efficiency, manufacturing costs, and environmental regulations still need to be overcome before commercialization.