This rare footage shows NASA testing the X-43A, an experimental hypersonic aircraft built to explore extreme-speed flight. Because scramjet engines cannot start from rest, the vehicle was carried under a B-52, boosted to hypersonic speed by a rocket, and only then ignited its own engine. | SpaceEve

309K views · 8.1K reactions | NASA took a major step toward...

It's the 20th anniversary of the X-43A record speed flight! ⭐ NASA’s X-43A experimental aircraft set the world speed record for a jet-powered aircraft 20 years ago on Nov. 16, 2004. The flight originated from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. The B-52B carried a Pegasus rocket under its wing, and the X-43A was attached to the rocket’s nose. Once in position over the Pacific Ocean, the rocket air-launched and its engine fired, and once in position, the X-43A’s engine

485K views · 4.4K reactions | JUST IN: SpaceX and NASA launch historic crewed mission, a landmark test flight that marks the first time American astronauts have blasted off from US soil in nearly a decade. | NBC News | Facebook

174K views · 2.5K reactions | SUPERSONIC JET MAKES HISTORIC TEST FLIGHT: NASA’s X-59 jet just completed its first test flight over the California desert. It’s designed to break the sound barrier without a sonic boom and could revolutionize air travel. ABC's Sophie Flay reports. | World News Now | Facebook