NASA’s X-59 Against an Orange Sky

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft sits on a ramp during engine run tests at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, March 12, 2026. A maintenance technician inspects the aircraft near its landing gear as engine runs, one of the final tests before the aircraft’s second flight, take place.

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft sits on a ramp during engine run tests at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, March 12, 2026. A maintenance technician inspects the aircraft near its landing gear as engine runs, one of the final tests before the aircraft’s second flight, take place.

Photographer NASA/Jim Ross
Location AFRC
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