Alleviation of the Sonic Boom by Thermal Means

Previous studies suggest that reduction of SST sonic boom noise to levels acceptable to the public requires elimination of shocks and creation of pressure rise times of 10 msec or more at the ground. Because it appears impractical to lengthen the aircraft sufficiently to achieve this objective, a feasibility investigation of the use of heat to simulate a long body was undertaken. The large power requirement dictates the use of direct combustion of cheap fuel for this purpose, and practical considerations motivate off-axis heating. This can be accomplished in principle by the use of either a thermal spike with its axis parallel to the airstream or a thermal keel that extends downward from the aircraft.

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