Smithsonian Magazine

In a First, NASA’s Experimental X-59 Plane Flew Faster Than the Speed of Sound, Setting the Stage for ‘Quiet’ Supersonic Aircraft

The United States banned supersonic flights over its land in 1973 due to their ear-splitting sonic booms. Experts are building a plane that should travel at those speeds but create only gentle thumps ...

NASA's X-59 jet is ready to break the sound barrier for the 1st time this month

NASA's X-59 jet is on the verge of finally breaking the sound barrier as the agency looks forward to the aircraft's first supersonic flight this month.
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A supersonic jet just broke the sound barrier again in a test flight — racing to bring back faster-than-sound air travel for the first time since the Concorde

On a clear morning over the Mojave Desert in January 2025, a dart-shaped jet called XB-1 punched through Mach 1 and kept climbing. The aircraft, built by Denver-based startup Boom Supersonic, became ...

When (and why) are military aircraft allowed to break the sound barrier?

Some may already be familiar with the sonic boom that accompanies a break to the sound barrier, but when and why would ...