NASA Aeronautics
@NASAaero
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Flying high!
Today, our X-59 quiet supersonic X-59 aircraft traveled from Birmingham, Alabama, to Daytona Beach, Florida. The aircraft aims to fly faster than sound with just a gentle thump rather than a sonic boom — helping usher in a new era of faster air travel.
We're prepping to feature X-59 at MAX POWER and will provide updates soon!
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Very pleased to announce our newest X-plane, the X-70 Fractal, is joining the @NASAaero fleet to research and develop advanced flight control technology far beyond anything tested in a crewed aircraft. She will take flight under the @NASA banner within the next two years. The science fiction future we imagined as children is ours to build... and I promise, there will be more 🇺🇸
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🚨 BREAKING: Introducing X-70 Fractal, @NASA's newest experimental aircraft!
This crewed, modular aircraft will allow the agency to rapidly swap out internal & external payloads to help keep pushing the frontiers of aviation technology! @nasaadmin
Details:
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The aircraft lineup just keeps getting bigger. ✈️
MAX POWER, a new aerospace expo, is set for Nov. 7-8 @NASAKennedy — featuring flyovers and static displays, including NASA’s F-15, F-18, T-38, and ER-2 aircraft.
Details on how to join us:
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From NASA student researcher to drone entrepreneur! 🚁
Gavin Gardner credits NASA’s University Student Research Challenge with helping him develop the technical and business skills that contributed to co-founding AG3 Labs.
Read his story:
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One year. New heights. Faster speeds. ✈️
Since its first flight on Oct. 28, 2025, NASA's X-59 has continued pushing the boundaries of aviation.
See how far we've come in just one year!
#NASAaero# #Quesst#
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NASA test pilot Mike Lippert completed his first flight in the X-59, marking his first time flying an X-plane.
After years flying high-performance aircraft and months preparing for the mission, Lippert completed high-altitude test points and handling evaluations to support the X-59 flight test campaign.
"For as long as I can remember, I've dreamt of doing exactly what I got to do today."
🔗:
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What can a glowing wing tell us about the future of flight? ✈️
At NASA Langley, researchers used unsteady pressure sensitive paint for the first time on a large-scale, freely moving model in Langley's Transonic Dynamics Tunnel, turning changes in airflow into data researchers can see.
Learn more:
Video credit: NASA
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🏆 A historic flight. A prestigious honor!
NASA's X-59 lead pilot Nils Larson recently received the Iven C. Kincheloe Award for his role in the aircraft's first flight and expanding its flight envelope. ✈️
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🧊✈️ NASA is tackling a rare but persistent aviation hazard: icing that occurs when aircraft encounter unusually large, supercooled water droplets in clouds.
Researchers are conducting tests to help industry better understand this phenomenon.
🔗
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Talk about diving into your work! ✈️🔧
Keeping NASA’s X-59 flight-ready sometimes means going headfirst into its engine inlet. See how technicians use “duct diving” to inspect critical components of our quiet supersonic aircraft.
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✈️ A passion for model aircraft turned into a career advancing flight research at NASA.
Meet three members of the team putting that passion to work at NASA Armstrong’s Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Laboratory:
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A double birthday celebration! 🎉
@NASA and @EdwardsAFB in California teamed up to honor NASA Armstrong’s 80th and America’s 250th with STEM activities, a NASA flyover with sonic boom, and remarks from astronaut Matthew Dominick. 🇺🇸 ✈️
Explore more about Armstrong's 80th:
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✈️ Six flights. One week. Fastest speed to date.
NASA’s X-59 completed its busiest week of flight testing yet — and reached Mach 1.53, approximately 1,010 mph, its fastest speed to date. 💨
See how the team is expanding the aircraft’s flight envelope:
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🎓 Success Story: University of Nevada, Reno
Check out this unexpected impact. ✈️
Through NASA's University Leadership Initiative, researchers worked on advanced simulations and testing for airborne systems that sparked the launch of a new Aerospace Engineering program. 🚀
🔗
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We’re celebrating NASA research test pilot David “Nils” Larson, who earned the 2026 Iven C. Kincheloe Award from the Society of Experimental Test Pilots for outstanding accomplishment in flight test! ✈️ 🌟
From the X-59’s first flight to its first flight reaching Mach 1.4 and 55,000 feet altitude, Nils’ pioneering work drives aerospace innovation forward.
Congratulations, Nils, on an inspiring achievement!
🔗:
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Smoother skies ahead✈️
NASA is developing technologies that are modernizing and digitizing the commercial flying experience, from the departure to the sky to the arrival. Learn more:
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⏰ Today is the day!
The deadline to apply for a NASA Spring 2027 internship is tonight, Sept. 14, at 11:59pm ET.
Get your application in before time runs out:
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Virtual reality demos. Artemis exhibits. Scientists, experts, and some of your favorite @NASA stars.
We're bringing it all to YOU! 🚀✈️🌟
Discovery Days are returning to @GLScienceCtr in downtown Cleveland: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 18 and 19.
Mark your calendars for this free, family-friendly event:
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Today we celebrate NASA Langley trailblazer Dr. Christine Darden on her 84th birthday!🎉
A supersonic pioneer, her work in sonic boom prediction and minimization helped pave the way for NASA’s Quesst mission — changing how we’ll all fly in the future.
Happy birthday to a true legend who continues to inspire generations!✨
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