A Texas aerospace company has just presented its Stargazer hypersonic aircraft concept, which would transport passengers to an altitude of more than 50 kilometers. With a cruising speed of Mach 9, the manufacturer claims that it could reach any point on the globe in an hour.
Will the future of commercial aviation be hypersonic? In any case, this is what Venus Aerospace, a Texan company which has just presented for the first time its space plane hypersonic Stargazer. According to the manufacturer, the device will be able to reach the speed of Mach 9 and transport passengers anywhere in the world in one hour.
To reach such a speed, the aircraft will fly at very high altitude, nearly 52 kilometers (170,000 feet). Stargazer will use airports conventional, and will therefore have to fly at subsonic speeds for take-off and landing. It is only once at altitude that it will accelerate to reach Mach 9. The plane will be 45 meters long with a wingspan of 30 meters, and will be able to carry up to 12 people.
A zero carbon footprint
Mach 9 means nine times the speed of sound, which varies according to temperature and therefore altitude. At more than 50 kilometers, Mach 9 corresponds to approximately 9,500 km/h. The team worked with the Nasa to ensure that the sonic boom created at such an altitude would not be audible from the ground. Venus Aerospace did not say what fuel the Stargazer will use, but says the footprint carbon would be zero.
However, the announcement should be taken with a grain of salt. The device is still in the concept stage, and the firm does not give any deadline for a possible prototype. Furthermore, the circumference of the earth being approximately 40,075 kilometres, one would have to travel at least 20,000 km/h to reach any point on the globe, a minimum speed which increases for an aircraft traveling at altitude. However, this question does not seem to worry investors, since Venus Aerospace has managed to obtain financing to the tune of more than $33 million.
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