• Technology

    Green Skies at Mach 5

    By Posted on 1.23.2008 24 Comments

    Modern air travel is a marvel. It's also a source of endless delay, annoyance and planet-killing greenhouse gases. A proposed hydrogen-powered hypersonic airliner could change all that. The plane is Reaction Engines's A2 concept, a Mach-5 (3,400mph) craft for 300 passengers funded in part by the European Union's Long-Term Advanced Propulsion Concepts and Technologies project (Lapcat). Lapcat wants an airliner that can fly from Brussels to Sydney in less than four hours. If built, the A2 will do just that—without producing a trace of carbon emissions.

    2.4.2008 at 10:41pm - Comment by Space_Is_the_future

    @ futurenow I agree, some sort of flex screen could be used to add the illusion of windows, but I'm not sure that it matters that much. The fast majority of the passengers will be bussiness travelers who are willing to spend a little extra and take a greater risk (new technology) in order to save 18 hours of earning potential. @cobrapub A very intersting read. I have no doubt that many of your points are valid. However, what I think is the most important part of this article is that it's a new idea (or an old one made new) that'll keep this technology from stagnating.



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