Spaceflight Now Home



Spaceflight Now +



Premium video content for our Spaceflight Now Plus subscribers.

Launch of X-43A
NASA's X-43A hypersonic aircraft is launched to Mach 10 by a Pegasus rocket booster where the experimental scramjet engine is tested during this third flight of the Hyper-X program. (3min 51sec file)
 Play video

Success for X-43A
Mission officials recap the successful flight of NASA's third and final X-43A hypersonic research vehicle during this post-launch news conference. (39min 25sec file)
 Play video

X-43A launch preview
NASA officials preview the third and final test launch of the X-43A hypersonic vehicle during this news conference from Dryden Flight Research Center. (29min 47sec file)
 Play video

Deep Impact arrives
NASA's Deep Impact comet spacecraft arrives at the Astrotech Space Operations Facility near Kennedy Space Center to begin final launch preparations for blastoff December 30 aboard a Boeing Delta 2 rocket. (2min 53sec file)
 Play video

Veterans Day
Aboard the International Space Station, commander Leroy Chiao offers his thoughts in this downlinked message in honor of Veterans Day.
 Play video

Delta rocket lofts GPS
The Boeing Delta 2 rocket lifts off Saturday morning with the GPS 2R-13 satellite from pad 17B at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
 Play video

Launch in full
This longer-length clip follows the Delta 2 rocket during its late-night ascent carrying the latest Global Positioning System satellite. (2min 25sec file)
 Play video

Become a subscriber
More video



NewsAlert



Sign up for our NewsAlert service and have the latest news in astronomy and space e-mailed direct to your desktop.

Enter your e-mail address:

Privacy note: your e-mail address will not be used for any other purpose.



Boeing to use X-43A results for future hypersonic ideas
BOEING NEWS RELEASE
Posted: November 17, 2004

Information gained from Tuesday's record-setting flight of NASA's Hyper-X research vehicle will be used by Boeing as it designs the future of flight.

Powered by an air-breathing supersonic combustion ramjet engine, or "scramjet," NASA's 12.3-foot-long Hyper-X (or X-43A) flew close to Mach 10, or about 7,200 miles per hour, on Nov. 16, after being launched from a B-52 off the Pacific coast after liftoff from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The flight broke a previous speed record for air-breathing aircraft set in March by another X-43A at Mach 6.83, or about 5,000 mph.

"This flight is a key milestone and a major step toward the future possibilities for producing boosters for sending large and critical payloads into space in a reliable, safe, inexpensive manner," said NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe. "These developments will also help us advance the Vision for Space Exploration, while helping to advance commercial aviation technology."

As part of the team that developed and built the X-43A for NASA, the Boeing Phantom Works advanced R&D unit designed the vehicle, the airframe thermal protection systems, and flight control and navigation systems.

"Breaking speed records with this new scramjet technology is very exciting for us," said George Orton, Phantom Works manager for hypersonic design and application. "But, the true importance of these pioneering flights is that we're learning some important lessons that we can apply to aerospace systems of the future."

Because scramjet engines have significantly fewer moving parts than traditional turbojet engines and do not, like conventional rocket engines, require oxidizer to be carried onboard for combustion, they will allow for the design of smaller, simpler, more reliable and affordable reusable vehicles for potential space, military and civil applications.

Boeing has been exploring the realms of hypersonic flight (defined as Mach 5 and above) since the 1950s, from the X-15 to the Space Shuttle to the X-43A. Today, Phantom Works is also working on the Scramjet Engine Demonstrator­WaveRider program for the U.S. Air Force in a teaming arrangement with Pratt & Whitney, as well as the HyFly Hypersonic Missile Demonstrator program for the U.S. Navy and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Phantom Works teamed with prime contractor ATK to develop and build the X-43A for NASA. ATK was responsible for vehicle fabrication, assembly, systems integration and testing in addition to providing the scramjet engine. The booster is a modified Pegasus rocket built by Orbital Sciences Corp.

NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., and Dryden Flight Research Center near Edwards, Calif., jointly conduct the Hyper-X program.

Boeing Phantom Works is the advanced R&D unit and a catalyst of innovation for the Boeing enterprise. It provides advanced solutions and innovative, breakthrough technologies that reduce cycle time and cost while improving the quality and performance of aerospace products and services.

Spaceflight Now Plus
Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: TUESDAY'S LAUNCH OF THE X-43A VEHICLE TO MACH 10 QT
VIDEO: LAUNCH RESULTS PRESENTED IN POST-FLIGHT BRIEFING QT
VIDEO: FOOTAGE OF PRE-LAUNCH ACTIVITIES QT
VIDEO: THE B-52 TAKES OFF FROM EDWARDS TUESDAY QT
VIDEO: PRE-FLIGHT NEWS CONFERENCE FOR THIS LAUNCH QT

PREVIOUS X-43A LAUNCHES:
VIDEO: CHASE PLANE VIDEO SHOWS JUNE 2001 MALFUNCTION QT
VIDEO: SECOND X-43A IS SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED IN MARCH QT
VIDEO: EXTENDED CLIP OF SECOND LAUNCH AS SEEN LIVE QT
VIDEO: SUCCESS DECLARED AT POST-LAUNCH PRESS BRIEFING QT
VIDEO: PREVIEW ANIMATION SHOWING X-43A LAUNCH QT
SUBSCRIBE NOW