We feel the need…the need for speed. ✈ You’re looking at one of the first-ever images of shockwaves interacting from two supersonic aircraft in flight. This image of planes moving faster than the speed of sound was captured in 2019. Previously, images of aircraft shockwaves, called Schlieren images, were only achievable in small-scale wind tunnels. Novel techniques were used to capture colorized composite images which reveal rippling shockwaves representing different densities of compressed air impacting the jets. Although accomplishments in their own right, these innovations will be put to use supporting nasaaero’s QUESST mission. QUESST, seeks to fly an experimental aircraft, the X-59, at supersonic speed, but instead of producing shockwaves that generate a telltale loud supersonic boom, it will employ technology to minimize its shockwaves into only a quiet sonic thump. Currently, over-land supersonic flight is prohibited in most of the world, as loud sonic booms disrupt life und...