NASA speed record: New jet soon to go anywhere in two hours!
Dec 13, 2004 18: 23 EST
Previously published Nov 18, 2004 11: 15 EST
NASA guys seem to have joined the new space-race fever! Their new scramjet engine, taking oxygen from the atmosphere instead of carrying liquid O2 to ignite its fuel, broke its own speed record yesterday; at nearly Mach 9.8, or 7,000 mph at about 110,000 feet. The jet had reached Mach 6,83 earlier.
That's fast enough to get anywhere on the globe in two hours, or cross the Atlantic Ocean in half an hour.
10 seconds is a start
The flight, originally scheduled for Nov. 15, took place in restricted airspace over the Pacific Ocean northwest of Los Angeles. The scramjet burned fuel for about 10 seconds up to its maximum speed. It then glided for 10 minutes before diving into the Pacific Ocean.
No moving parts and super-thermal protection
The flight was the last and fastest of three unpiloted flight tests in NASA's Hyper-X Program. The program's purpose is to explore an alternative to rocket power for space access vehicles.
Unlike jet plane engines, which use fans to compress air, the X-43A uses no moving parts - the shape of its belly sucks in and compresses air at supersonic speeds. Carbon-carbon thermal protection material prevents the metal parts from melting.
A major step for future aviation and Space exploration!
"This flight is a key milestone and a major step toward the future possibilities for producing boosters for sending large and critical payloads into space in a reliable, safe, inexpensive manner," said NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. "These developments will also help us advance the Vision for Space Exploration, while helping to advance commercial aviation technology."
Image of X-43 jet dropping from B-52B plane, courtesy of NASA.
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