Japan to test new supersonic transport

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Chris Leonard Friend of CR4 Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1776 Good Answers: 35	Japan to test new supersonic transport 08/23/2005 8:50 AM
	Next moth, JAXA, the Japanese space agency will test a new supersonic plane over the Australian outback. The experimental plane will be launched sometime between September 15th and October 15th, from the back of a rocket, which will carry the plane to an altitude of 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) and a speed of Mach 2. Once launched, a parachute will be deployed which will allow the plane to float back to Earth. The supersonic plane will not provide any power; JAXA just wants to collect information about the plane's aerodynamics. If the test is successful, JAXA plans to follow up with similar tests of a jet-powered craft. Supersonic transport, once viewed as the future of commercial aviation, has fallen on hard times with the elimination of the Concorde program last year. __________________ Off to take on other challenges. Good luck everybody! See you around the Interwebs.
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BRodda The Feature Creep Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 990	#1 Rocket test 08/23/2005 9:17 AM
	I wonder what kind of information they will collect. I imaging any sensors on the test rig would interfere with the aerodynamics. It must be hard to design test rigs that can withstand Mach 2 wind forces... __________________ "The future is here. It's just not widely distributed yet." -William Gibson
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Steve Melito Guru Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2969 Good Answers: 33	#2 In reply to #1 Re:Rocket test 08/23/2005 9:45 AM
	Considering that some of the cost is being underwritten by defense expenditures, I wonder if one of the goals is to develop a spy plane that the Japanese can use to keep tabs on the North Korean missile program.
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Chris Leonard Friend of CR4 Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1776 Good Answers: 35	#3 In reply to #2 Re:Rocket test 08/23/2005 10:21 AM
	Seems possible. SST hasn't been very successful commercially, but it remains a military mainstay. __________________ Off to take on other challenges. Good luck everybody! See you around the Interwebs.
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