NASA wants hypersonic plane, puts aside $15 million

by Tom Johansmeyer on

If NASA gets its way, layovers will become a thing of the past. It has plans in the works to develop hypersonic jets that would surpass the speed of sound by a factor of five. What’s the implication? Well, you get on a plane in New York and get off in Sydney a mere two and a half hours later. That’s a cut from the current flight duration of 21 hours, according to The Daily Mail. In addition to shortening existing routes, NASA also wants to put faraway places into play … including Mars.

According to the NASA Aeronautics 2010 proposal, it’s putting aside $5million a year for the next three years to support the development of this reusable aircraft. The Daily Mail continues:

The proposal says: ‘The hypersonic heating environment, coupled with the emphasis on reusability, creates additional severe technology challenges for materials, material coatings, and structures that not only carry the aerodynamic loads of the air but also repeatedly sustain high thermal loads requiring long-life and durability while minimizing weight.

It looks like the future may be close. The X-51A Waverider scramjet hit Mach 6 this summer and flew on its own for 200 seconds. But, it had to get started by being dropped from a B-52 bomber. NASA’s plan is for something that can take off and land on its own.

[photo by Bluedharma via Flickr]

Surf’s up, East Coast!

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Although Hurricane Bill is playing havoc with weekend travel plans for many on the East Coast, it’s proving to be a landmark event for surfers up and down the Eastern Seaboard. This Saturday and Sunday are shaping up to be some of the biggest wave days in recent memory, and the excitement among Eastern wave riders is palpable.

With sustained winds at over 100 MPH, Hurricane Bill has been whipping the wave action on Eastern beaches into a frenzy. At the time of this post, North Carolina’s Outer Banks, was experiencing wave action of 16 to 20 feet, while Maryland, the Jersey Shore, Long Island and Cape Cod can expect waves of anywhere from 9 to 15 feet in height. In Bermuda, which has taken the full brunt of the storm, waves have been cresting as high as 30 to 40 feet!

Considering the average wave size for most of the Eastern U.S., you can expect experienced surfers to be heading to the beach this weekend in droves. For less experienced surfers and beachgoers, this is definitely a weekend to stay off the shore, as strong rip currents and unexpected wave action are going to make for extremely dangerous conditions. Do you happen to live near the water? Let us know how it’s looking this weekend in the comments.