The weird tool that will tell NASA if the X-59 supersonic jet is truly silent
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The agency needed to create a new ultra-sensitive probe to measure the X-59’s sonic ‘thumps.’
As Lockheed Martin prepares for the first flight of the X-59, its silent supersonic jet, NASA scientists are finalizing tests to measure the real impact of the aircraft’s aerodynamic shape on its sonic shockwaves. NASA will measure the air vibrations caused by the jet’s sonic boom by surveying residents in areas where the X-59 passes overhead, but it will also need to measure it through scientific means.