Armstrong Flight Research Center Archives

NASA pushes new wing design to find structural limits – NASA 0
- Advanced Air Vehicles Program, Aeronautics, Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Langley Research Center, SCIENCE, Science / Health, Science Mission Directorate, scientists, Space, Space Communications & Navigation Program, Space Launch System (SLS), Space Telescope, space-x-ipo, SpaceX, Subsonic Flight Demonstrator, Subsonic Vehicle Technologies and Tools
- July 17, 2026
NASA researchers recently subjected a new wing design, which appears long and thin with a lightweight structural design, to a series of grueling tests to find its structural limits. What they found encouraged them about the wing’s potential, even as they pushed it beyond its intended limits. The 15-foot Structural Wing Experiment Evaluating Armor Reinforcement
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NASA uses subscale aircraft to accelerate flight innovation – NASA 0
- Aeronautics, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Flight Innovation, SCIENCE, Science / Health, Science Mission Directorate, scientists, Space, Space Communications & Navigation Program, Space Launch System (SLS), Space Telescope, space-x-ipo, SpaceX
- July 15, 2026
Testing new aerospace concepts in flight remains one of NASA’s most effective ways to advance knowledge and reduce risk. The Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Laboratory at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, supports this mission by using small, autonomous, remotely piloted aircraft as cost-effective platforms to mature innovative ideas, accelerate learning, and
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NASA jets turn red, white and blue – NASA 0
- Aeronautics, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Flight Innovation, NASA Aircraft, SCIENCE, Science / Health, Science Mission Directorate, scientists, Space, Space Communications & Navigation Program, Space Launch System (SLS), Space Telescope, space-x-ipo, SpaceX
- July 14, 2026
In honor of America’s 250th birthday, two of NASA’s most iconic aircraft received a new coat of red, white and blue paint ahead of a flyover over Washington on July 4, 2026, with other NASA aircraft. An F-15 and an F/A-18 at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, were recently repainted in patriotic
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NASA study points to smoother air taxi trips – NASA 0
- Aeronautics, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Drones & You, Flight Innovation, SCIENCE, Science / Health, Science Mission Directorate, scientists, Space, Space Communications & Navigation Program, Space Launch System (SLS), Space Telescope, space-x-ipo, SpaceX
- July 13, 2026
Nobody wants to get on an uncomfortable plane. NASA’s research could help the emerging industry of air taxis (small vertical takeoff and landing aircraft intended for short trips) understand the relationship between comfort and willingness to fly. That’s where NASA comes in, with data that can help identify how to plan air taxi trips that
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NASA photographer captures images from the F-18 over Washington – NASA 0
- Aeronautics, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Flight Innovation, NASA Aircraft, SCIENCE, Science / Health, Science Mission Directorate, scientists, Space, Space Communications & Navigation Program, Space Launch System (SLS), Space Telescope, space-x-ipo, SpaceX
- July 10, 2026
NASA flight photographers capture history from a perspective few experience, getting a rare bird’s-eye view of the agency’s missions in action. His photographs document key NASA research and give the public a front-row seat to the work being done behind the scenes. Jim Ross, a photographer at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California,
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NASA’s X-59 Aircraft Flies Supersonic for First Time 0
- Aeronautics, Armstrong Flight Research Center, Low Boom Flight Demonstrator, NASA Aircraft, Quesst: The Flights, SCIENCE, Supersonic Flight
- June 5, 2026
NASA’s experimental X-59 aircraft marked a major milestone Friday, June 5, when it flew faster than the speed of sound for the first time, setting the stage for demonstrating its quiet supersonic capabilities later this year. NASA test pilot Jim “Clue” Less took off and landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California, reaching a top speed of approximately Mach 1.1 (713 mph) and altitude of 43,400 feet. The X-59’s flight began at 11:08 a.m. PDT and lasted 81 minutes, with the team focusing on flying qualities at both subsonic and then
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