OSHKOSH, Wis. — The second letter in the NASA acronym is “aeronautics.” America’s space agency does so much more than put astronauts in orbit.
The consumer applications to NASA’s research are on full display at EAA AirVenture.
“This is my favorite week of the year,” said project manager Michael Vincent. “I’m an airplane nerd. I’m a pilot. I’ve loved aviation my entire life. Being at EAA and talking to the flying public is fun.”
Vincent, who works out of Langley Research Center in Virginia, was among the scientists and researchers for NASA taking questions from young and old throughout the week.
NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility Mission takes up much of a full corner of the tent. Vincent says the project is focused on developing technology that may one day be used in flying taxis.
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“It’s not going to happen overnight,” Vincent explained. He says you could see autonomous vehicles airborne in two decades, and something like an Uber of the skies, with a pilot, even sooner. “The biggest hurdle that we see is safety going forward. If you step inside an aircraft, the expectation from the public is you have a high level of safety.”
Another project he was proud to discuss could cut airline travel times in half.
“It’s happening now. There’s companies that are going to develop supersonic transports and they’re going to sell it to the airlines,” Vincent said.
NASA’s X-59 program seeks to dampen the noise of sonic booms and make the engines overall, quieter.
“What we’re doing with our supersonic aircraft is looking at, what the noise levels need to be for that,” Vincent said.
The NASA tent is on the north end of the EAA AirVenture grounds. The convention and fly-in runs through Sunday, with daily admission beginning at 7 a.m. CST.
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