A one-inch scale model of a typical supersonic airplane design is examined before being installed for sonic boom studies in the four foot supersonic tunnel at Langley Research Center of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Purpose of the research is to study pressure fields at large distances from airplanes. Pressure measurements are made in the tunnel up to 50 inches away from the model, simulating altitudes up to 40,000 feet. Through such research, NASA is providing a better general understanding of the sonic boom problems particulary in evaluating the phenomonon as it affects the design of supersonic transports of the future.
