NASA has successfully completed a series of engine performance tests for the X-59, a supersonic research aircraft designed to reduce the disruptive noise of sonic booms. The tests, conducted in collaboration with Lockheed Martin at the company’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, mark a critical milestone as the aircraft prepares for its first flight later this year.
The X-59 is part of NASA’s Quesst mission, which aims to demonstrate technology that could make commercial supersonic flight over land viable by reducing the loud sonic boom to a quieter “sonic thump.” The aircraft’s unique design, including a 38-foot-long nose and a top-mounted engine, is engineered to reshape shock waves and minimize noise levels that reach the ground.
Shorter flight times, quieter booms: see how NASA’s X-59 experimental airplane could revolutionize supersonic flight in the documentary “X-59: NASA’s Quesst for Supersonic Flight,” streaming now for free on NASA+. https://t.co/7a6FTvxBwE pic.twitter.com/B5YJCTqsjH
— NASA (@NASA) December 30, 2024
The engine tests, conducted between October and January, assessed the performance of the modified F414-GE-100 engine, a system adapted from the engines used in the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 Super Hornet.
The first phase of testing focused on ensuring the aircraft’s hydraulic, electrical, and environmental control systems functioned properly while the engine operated at idle. Subsequent tests ramped up to full power and engaged the afterburner, generating up to 22,000 pounds of thrust—enough for the X-59 to cruise at Mach 1.4 (925 miles per hour) at 55,000 feet.
Look at that glow 💎🔥
Check out the powerful afterburner exhaust coming from the tail of NASA’s supersonic X-59, its unique Mach diamonds, also known as shock diamonds—visible in the superhot plume!
📸 Lockheed Martin pic.twitter.com/fJBhN7jQxs
— NASA Aeronautics (@NASAaero) February 4, 2025
Raymond Castner, propulsion lead for the X-59 at NASA’s Glenn Research Center, said the results were promising. “We were getting smooth and steady airflow as predicted from wind tunnel testing. We didn’t have any structural or excessive vibration issues. And parts of the engine and aircraft that needed cooling were getting it,” he said in a statement.
With the engine tests complete, NASA will now evaluate the X-59 for electromagnetic interference effects and conduct a series of taxi tests before the aircraft takes flight.
Once airborne, the X-59 will undergo a series of demonstration flights, scheduled through 2027, to collect data on how communities on the ground perceive the quieter sonic thump.
NASA plans to share this data with regulators, including the Federal Aviation Administration, to inform potential future policy changes that could lift the decades-long ban on commercial supersonic flights over land.
