logo
Nasa trials TINY supersonic ‘Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches

Nasa trials TINY supersonic ‘Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches

Scottish Sun15-07-2025
Trials in Japan follow US plans to scrap ban on supersonic air travel
AIR WE GO! Nasa trials TINY supersonic 'Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
NASA researchers have been using a tiny aircraft dubbed "Son of Concorde" in trials to assess the impact of supersonic flights on residents.
The tests took place in a wind tunnel in Japan measuring just 3ft by 3ft.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
1
The tiny 'Son of Concorde' undergoes tests in a wind tunnel in Japan
At present there is a ban on supersonic flights over land as researchers scramble to find new ways to limit the impact at ground level.
The latest tests come after President Trump ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to scrap a longstanding ban on supersonic air travel across the US.
He wants to replace it with a to-be-determined set of regulations that will allow faster-than-sound travel so long as the sonic booms it creates do not breach certain noise limitations.
In an executive order signed in June, Trump directed the FAA administrator to begin the process of repealing a section of the Code of Federal Regulations that prohibits anyone in the United States from flying a civilian aircraft 'at a true flight Mach number greater than 1'.
Read more in Tech
UP AND AWAY 'Son of Concorde' bosses reveal over 600 routes could see flight times HALVED
That regulation was imposed in April 1973, at a time when the British and French governments were jointly developing Concorde, a supersonic airliner that had a cruising speed in excess of Mach 2, or twice the speed of sound.
Engineers from Nasa and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) completed the fresh round of supersonic testing using a miniature version of Nasa's X-59 quiet-supersonic experimental aircraft in the trials.
Vid shows supersonic test launch in bid for 1hr cross-Atlantic flights in 5yrs
The campaign was conducted at JAXA's facility in Chofu, Tokyo.
It assessed how the aircraft's pressure signature, audible on the ground as a sonic 'thump,' will reach people beneath its flight path.
The X-59 demonstrator measures 99.7ft in length with a 29.7-ft wingspan, but the Chofu tunnel could only accommodate the miniature model, which is just 1.62% of the real jet.
Engineers nevertheless subjected the replica to airflow conditions representing the aircraft's planned cruise of Mach 1.4 – about 925 miles per hour.
By comparing the wind-tunnel data with detailed Computational Fluid Dynamics predictions, Nasa can validate how air will wrap around the jet's slender fuselage and long, highly swept wing.
Critically, it will also show how its shock waves are expected to behave.
Unlike conventional supersonic airplanes, whose shock waves combine into a single, ground-shaking blast, the X-59's carefully sculpted nose and chine are intended to separate those waves.
The goal is a brief, low-volume 'sonic thump' rather than an ear-splitting boom, opening the door to overland supersonic passenger flight, reports Interest Engineering.
The Chofu tests mark the third time the model has entered a wind tunnel, following earlier runs at JAXA and NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio.
Researchers delivered 'critical experimental data to compare to…predictions", Nasa noted.
The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA's Quesst mission, an effort to prove that quiet supersonic flight is technically and socially viable.
Once airborne, the jet will make a series of community overflights across the United States so researchers can gauge how residents react to its muted acoustic footprint.
Their feedback, combined with the aerodynamic and acoustic data now being amassed in wind tunnels and ground tests, will inform regulators as they consider lifting the decades-old ban on supersonic flight over land.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Everything you need to know about Donald Trump's four-day Scotland visit
Everything you need to know about Donald Trump's four-day Scotland visit

Scotsman

time17 minutes ago

  • Scotsman

Everything you need to know about Donald Trump's four-day Scotland visit

Donald Trump will be meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and First Minister John Swinney. Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Preparations are underway as Donald Trump is set to arrive in Scotland later this week. This will be the first time the US president has returned to the country of his mother's birth since 2023. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Mr Trump is set to visit his golf resorts at Turnberry on the Ayrshire coast and Menie in Aberdeenshire. He will return to the UK for an official state visit in September. Donald Trump will visit his golf resorts during his Scotland visit. | Bloomberg via Getty Images When is Trump visiting? White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that the visit would take place between July 25 and July 29. She said: 'President Trump will travel to Scotland, where he will visit both Turnberry and Aberdeen from July 25 to July 29. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "During the visit, President Trump will meet again with Prime Minister Starmer to refine the great trade deal that was brokered between the United States and the United Kingdom." Make sure you keep up to date with news from across Scotland by signing up to our free newsletter here. His schedule has not been made public but he is expected to split his time between his two Scottish bases at Turnberry and Menie. What is he doing in Scotland? Mr Trump's press secretary confirmed that he will be meeting Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Aberdeen. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad First Minister John Swinney has also confirmed he will have a meeting with Mr Trump during the visit, although no details have been released. PA Mr Trump said: 'We're going to be meeting with the British Prime Minister, very respectful, and we are going to have a meeting with him, probably in Aberdeen, and we're going to do a lot of different things. 'We're going to also refine the trade deal that we've made. So we'll be meeting mostly […] at probably one of my properties, or maybe not, depending on what happens, but we'll be in Aberdeen, in Scotland, meeting with the Prime Minister.' He will also visit both of his golf courses in Scotland - Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It is also expected Mr Trump will pay a visit to the 18-hole links New Course ahead of its expected opening in August. What will security be like? The chair of the Scottish Police Federation, David Threadgold, told Scotland on Sunday that all officers in Scotland could be affected for the duration of the trip, with some officers potentially being asked to work 12-hour shifts. He said: 'This is a huge policing event for Scotland and we will require mutual aid because of the huge demand on my colleagues. 'Very few if any cops will not be impacted by next week's visit and beyond.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He added that ensuring officers can eat, drink and rest will be a 'challenge'. Police Scotland have also made a request to the Police Service of Northern Ireland seeking officers to provide additional support during the visit. Flying restrictions over the Trump International Golf Links site in Aberdeenshire are already in force and will remain in place until August 10. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Will there be protests? Coordinated anti-Trump protests are being held in Edinburgh and Aberdeen this weekend, marking the arrival of the US President in Scotland. Since the dates of the President's visit have been confirmed, a group of campaigners from across the UK have joined forces under a banner called the 'Stop Trump Coalition'. It has organised two protests in Scotland on Saturday, at Union Terrace Gardens in Aberdeen and outside the US consulate in Edinburgh, which are expected to kick off at noon. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Protesters gathered in Edinburgh when Donald Trump visited Scotland in 2018. | PA Organisers said activists, made up of trade unionists, climate campaigners and pro-Palestine groups, will respond to the President's agenda and follow him 'wherever he goes' during his trip.

US military choppers spotted over Scots city ahead of Trump visit
US military choppers spotted over Scots city ahead of Trump visit

Daily Record

timean hour ago

  • Daily Record

US military choppers spotted over Scots city ahead of Trump visit

Several military chinook helicopters were spotted over Aberdeen on Tuesday afternoon. US military aircraft have been spotted flying over Aberdeen as preparations ramp up for Donald Trump's return to Scotland later this week. ‌ The former US President is expected to touch down in the north-east to unveil a second golf course at his Balmedie resort and meet with both Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and First Minister John Swinney during the high-profile visit. ‌ Locals were left stunned on Tuesday afternoon as a fleet of Chinook helicopters flew over Torry Battery and Aberdeen Harbour. ‌ The helicopters - believed to be part of the advance security detail - later landed at Aberdeen Airport. Flight tracking data shows they travelled from Cambridge and arrived in the Granite City around 12.30pm. While Trump's exact schedule remains under wraps, a major security operation is already underway, with Police Scotland warning of mass protests and the biggest police deployment since the death of Queen Elizabeth II. ‌ Officers are bracing for demonstrations in Aberdeen, Ayrshire, Glasgow and Edinburgh, mirroring the widespread backlash seen during Trump's first term in office. Meanwhile, the Sand Bothy in Balmedie has announced it will be closed to the public from July 28 to 30 due to "access restrictions". In a statement, the volunteer-run group said: 'We understand this may cause inconvenience for some. We truly appreciate your patience and continued support. ‌ "We have received no additional information beyond what has already been publicly shared and are therefore unable to comment on the nature or details of the visit." The timing of the closure has sparked speculation Trump may head to Turnberry in Ayrshire first, before making his way north later in the week. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Police Scotland confirmed they will draw on mutual aid from other forces across the UK for the operation - codenamed Operation Roll - with insiders saying hundreds, if not thousands, of officers will be involved. The force's entire team of police liaison officers is expected to be deployed for the visit.

New UK airline with cheap US fares is ‘parked' after just TWO flights – with people fearing it's been scrapped for good
New UK airline with cheap US fares is ‘parked' after just TWO flights – with people fearing it's been scrapped for good

Scottish Sun

timean hour ago

  • Scottish Sun

New UK airline with cheap US fares is ‘parked' after just TWO flights – with people fearing it's been scrapped for good

Plus, The Sun's Lisa Minot weighs in on the potential success of the airline GROUNDED New UK airline with cheap US fares is 'parked' after just TWO flights – with people fearing it's been scrapped for good Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A BRAND new UK airline's only plane has been stored after just two commercial flights, raising questions over the airline's future. Global Airlines, founded by 36-year-old British multimillionaire James Asquith, has been placed in storage in France after just two return flights. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Global Airlines' only aircraft has been stored in Tarbes, France Credit: Reddit It made its inaugural flight on May 19 from Glasgow Airport to New York's JFK, returning four days later. It's only other journey was from Manchester Airport and New York on May 21, returning May 25. Global Airlines' only plane '9H-GLOBL' has now been parked at Tarbes Airport in France, which is the largest aircraft storage facility in Europe. The facility is usually used for long-term storage. Tarbes is often used by airlines to store or recycle aircraft with aviation news site Simple Flying claiming it is the place aircraft go 'when the time comes'. In a LinkedIn post, the airline said: "After completing the latest maintenance in Dresden, 9H-GLOBL will be heading to Tarbes to park until it is time to head off to the next stage of heavy maintenance. "It's always great to see her in the sky and it won't be long before she is up in the clouds once again on the way to the next adventure." Tarbes Airport is often referred to as an 'aircraft boneyard' or 'aircraft graveyard'. Boneyard facilities are often used to store aircraft while they receive maintenance. Other aircraft may be disassembled and parts sold before planes are then scrapped. Global Airlines Take-Off According to Simple Flying, Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport near the French Pyrenees, is the most notable boneyard in France. TARMAC Aerosave operates at the airport, to store, maintain and recycle aircraft and can handle over 100 aircraft at any one time. One person said on Reddit: "Love the A380, sucks to see one going back to storage and when looking at the news surrounding Global Airlines, I'm not sure if we'll see this A380 returning to service." Another user added: "They were never an airline in the first place - they don't have an air certificate, their recent 'flights' earlier this year were just PR exercises with HiFly operating the plane on their behalf." A third user commented: "How does it need heavy check already?" The Global Airlines website still states that it will be "landing soon" with "a new website and news of the first flights on 9H-GLOBL to New York JFK". 3 As a result, people have started to question what it means for the airline's future Credit: Alamy However, if you try to access the 'story' page about the airline - you get a '404 - page not found' error. The airline previously pledged to take travelled back to the 'Golden Age' of travel and is the second airline to operate an Airbus 380 secondhand. Return economy flights were £778, 95 per cent more expensive than a standard £399 British Airways seat. However, slow sales saw this price more than halved. Now with the aircraft in storage, it is unclear when and if it will fly again. Will the airline take off? Lisa Minot, The Sun's head of travel weighs in. IT'S being billed -by its millionaire owner - as a game-changing new airline that will revolutionise the passenger experience. But despite the lofty ambitions of its founder James Asquith - and its first commercial flight today from Glasgow to New York - the plain fact remains, it is simply not a functioning airline yet. With just two fixed-date, charter flights from Glasgow and another - from Manchester later this month, the airline does not yet have the necessary permits - or slots - to fulfill its original ambition of launching regular scheduled flights from Gatwick to New York. It is also taking on the big boys of the UK and US aviation industry on the most popular transatlantic route. Asquith is looking to offer a revolutionary new service by using the huge Airbus A380 but Global's only functioning plane - flying on the Glasgow inaugural today - is a 12-year-old A380 that was owned by China Southern. Despite promising five different classes on the plane - including a much vaunted 'gamer class' that would sit between premium economy and business class and feature pods where passengers could play Xbox and PS5s - the aircraft taking off this week will feature just the original three classes if flew as a China Southern outfit - first, business and economy. The London to New York route is lucrative for the legacy airlines like British Airways and Virgin as the number of business class passengers mean it can bring in decent profits. Global Airline's plane will have fewer premium seats than its competitors on an older plane - and right now can't even offer scheduled flights or regular departures. While competition is always good for passengers, Global has a mountain to climb before it can consider itself a serious alternative to the traditional carriers. It will be interesting to see if the ambitions translate into a real game-changer of a service. An abandoned UK airport is set to reopen its doors after a decade in a £500m revamp – and could offer Ryanair and easyJet flights. Plus, a major airline has launched new UK flights to a popular African holiday destination – and breaks are just as cheap as Spain.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store