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When NASA's -ART plane state is proven, specialized tools are needed to perform tests and capture data, but if these tools require maintenance, they must wait until they are fixed. Unless you have support. That's why NASA recently calibrated a new impact detection detector to capture shockwave data when the agency's silent supersonic research plane X-59 began its test flight.

When an aircraft flies faster than sound, it produces shock waves that travel through the air, creating a strong sound stamp. The X-59 will divert those shock waves, producing only silent supersonic strikes. In recent weeks, NASA has completed a calibrated flight of a new close-range impact detection probe, a cone-shaped device that will capture data on the shock wave that will produce the X-59.

The probe is mounted on the F-15D research plane that will be very close to X-59 to collect the data required by NASA. The new unit will serve as NASA's main nearby field detector and the same model developed by NASA last year will serve as a reserve to be installed on another F-15B.

These two units mean that the X-59 team has an alternative list in case the main investigation requires maintenance or repair. For flight tests such as the X-59, data collection is critical, and operations revolve around adjusted installments, weather conditions and other variables, support copies of critical equipment help ensure continuity, maintain deadlines and retain operational efficiency.

"If there are some detectors happening to the detector, such as underground failure, there is no simple solution," explained Mike Frederick, principal investigator of the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center survey in Edwards, California. "The other factor is the aircraft itself. We don't want to delay flights to the X-59 if maintenance is required."

To calibrate the new detector, the team measured shock waves from the NASA F/AA-18 study plane. Preliminary results show that the detector successfully captured the pressure changes associated with the shock wave based on the team’s expectations. Frederick and his team are now reviewing the data to confirm that they are consistent with mathematical models on land and meet the precise standards required for flights X-59.

Armstrong's NASA researchers are preparing additional flights for primary and backup probes in F-15 aircraft. Each aircraft will fly at supersonic speeds and collect data from collision waves. The team is working to validate the primary and support investigations to confirm all redundancy. In other words, make sure they are reliable and usable.

Article Translator: Priscila Valdez