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X-43A and Pegasus Booster Rocket Attached to B-52 Mothership

X-43A and Pegasus Booster Rocket Attached to B-52 Mothership
The X-43A hypersonic research aircraft and its modified Pegasus booster rocket are nestled under the wing of NASA's NB-52B carrier aircraft during pre-flight systems testing at the Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA.

EC01-0079-2
The X-43A hypersonic research aircraft and its modified Pegasus booster rocket are nestled under the wing of NASA’s NB-52B carrier aircraft during pre-flight systems testing at the Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA. The combined systems test was one of the last major milestones in the Hyper-X research program before the first X-43A flight. The X-43A flights was the first actual flight tests of an aircraft powered by a revolutionary supersonic-combustion ramjet (“scramjet”) engine capable of operating at hypersonic speeds (above Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound). The 12-foot, unpiloted research vehicle was developed and built by MicroCraft Inc., Tullahoma, TN, under NASA contract. The booster was built by Orbital Sciences Corp., Dulles, VA. After being air-launched from NASA’s NB-52 mothership, the booster accelerated the X-43A to test speed and altitude. The X-43A then separated from the rocket and flew a pre-programmed trajectory, conducting aerodynamic and propulsion experiments until it descended into the Pacific Ocean. Three research flights were planned, two at Mach 7 and one at Mach 10.March 15, 2001NASA Photo / Tom Tschida› X-43A Project Description