Flight testing models has a long history in aerodynamics. Above you see a Curtiss JN-4 biplane in flight with a model wing suspended below the fuselage. This test was conducted Keep reading
Tag: flight test
HIFiRE
Earlier this month, an international team launched a successful hypersonic flight test in Australia. The Hypersonic International Research Experimentation (HIFiRE) Flight 5b was launched atop a two-stage rocket and reached Keep reading
Visualizing F-18 Flow
Flow visualization techniques are helpful outside of wind and water tunnels, too. The photo above comes from the F-18 High Alpha Research Vehicle (HARV) program in which techniques like smoke and dye Keep reading
X-51A Scramjet Test Flight
The X-51A Waverider hypersonic aircraft had its second test flight earlier this week. Unfortunately, its supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) engine failed to transition from its start-up fuel to its primary Keep reading
Wind Tunnel Testing
This photo shows a prototype of the X-48C blended wing body aircraft being tested in NASA Langley’s 12-Foot Low-Speed Tunnel. Blended wing bodies have many advantages over conventional tube-and-wing designs: Keep reading
Happy Anniversary, Enterprise!
Wind tunnels are great, but there’s nothing like a flight test to learn about the aerodynamics of a new vehicle. Today in 1977, the space shuttle prototype Enterprise flew on Keep reading