As we honor the legacy of aviation pioneers this National Aviation Day, NASA’s X-59 is preparing to push the boundaries of what’s possible in air travel. The quiet supersonic aircraft’s historic first flight is on the horizon, with final ground tests about to begin. Following completion of low-speed taxi tests in July 2025 in Palmdale, […]
Category: Aeronautics
National Aviation Day: Celebrating NASA’s Heritage While Charting Our Future
As we observe National Aviation Day Tuesday – a tribute to Orville Wright’s birthday – let’s reflect on both America’s and NASA’s aviation heritage and share how we are pushing the boundaries of flight for the nation’s future. Modern NASA grew from the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), an agency created by Congress in […]
National Aviation Day: Celebrating NASA’s Heritage While Charting Our Future
As we observe National Aviation Day Tuesday – a tribute to Orville Wright’s birthday – let’s reflect on both America’s and NASA’s aviation heritage and share how we are pushing the boundaries of flight for the nation’s future. Modern NASA grew from the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), an agency created by Congress in […]
NASA Invites You to Celebrate National Aviation Day 2025
The first “A” in NASA stands for Aeronautics – so naturally that means today, Aug. 19, National Aviation Day, is one of our favorite days all year! National Aviation Day was first proclaimed in 1939 by President Franklin Roosevelt to celebrate the birthday of aviation pioneer Orville Wright, who, with his brother Wilbur, in 1903, […]
NASA Tests Research Aircraft to Improve Air Taxi Flight Controls
Flying the friendly skies may one day include time-saving trips in air taxis to get from point A to point B – and NASA researchers are currently working to make that future a reality. They are using wind tunnel and flight tests to gather data on an electric Vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) scaled-down small […]
NASA Uses Wind Tunnel to Test Advanced Air Mobility Aircraft Wing
The advanced air mobility industry is currently working to produce novel aircraft ranging from air taxis to autonomous cargo drones, and all of those designs will require extensive testing – which is why NASA is working to give them a head-start by studying a special kind of model wing. The wing is a scale model […]
NASA Drop Test Supports Safer Air Taxi Design and Certification
As the aviation industry works to develop new air taxis and other electric aircraft made from innovative, lightweight materials, there’s a growing need to understand how those materials behave under impact. That’s why NASA is investigating potential air taxi materials and designs that could best protect passengers in the event of a crash. On June […]
NASA Drop Test Supports Safer Air Taxi Design and Certification
As the aviation industry works to develop new air taxis and other electric aircraft made from innovative, lightweight materials, there’s a growing need to understand how those materials behave under impact. That’s why NASA is investigating potential air taxi materials and designs that could best protect passengers in the event of a crash. On June […]
NASA Tests 5G-Based Aviation Network to Boost Air Taxi Connectivity
NASA engineers are exploring how the technology used in existing cellphone networks could support the next generation of aviation. In April and May, researchers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland built two specialized radio systems to study how well fifth-generation cellular network technology, known as 5G, can handle the demands of air taxi communications. […]
NASA Tests Mixed Reality Pilot Simulation in Vertical Motion Simulator
Commercial companies and government agencies are increasingly pursuing a more immersive and affordable alternative to conventional displays currently used in flight simulators. A NASA research project is working on ways to make this technology available for use faster. Mixed reality systems where users interact with physical simulators while wearing virtual reality headsets offer a promising […]