If the X-51A Waverider burn is any indicator, your cross country commute from Los Angeles to New York could be significantly faster in the not-so-distant future. Today, the X-51A Waverider successfully did a 200 second burn, making it the longest-ever supersonic combustion ramjet-powered flight at Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound). The previous longest scramjet burn in a flight test was 12 seconds in a NASA X-43.
What does any of that mean for you? It means that we’re going to see some really fast planes, soon. So fast, a flight from Los Angeles to New York City would only take around 45-minutes. Not to mention, the ability to fly about the universe at Mach 5 speeds could open us up to a whole new level of space exploration. Martini lunch in Los Angeles, dinner in NYC, and then home to bed on the moon.
At CM4, we love to see people pushing the limits, whether it is with stylish design, innovative technology, or a mixture of the two. You can see the full news report video, here and watch a simulation video of the burn, below. That trip to Mars is just around the corner, and who knows, maybe someone will finally finish the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs. Take THAT Han Solo!
