Boom Supersonic’s new aircraft is supposed to be able to fly over continents (unlike the Concorde) because it makes less noise. How is that possible?

Question

I thought the supersonic boom you heard was a continuous sound that was following every aircraft at supersonic speed.

In: 7

Answer 1

All supersonic aircraft actually produce at least 2 sonic booms (or sometimes more) depending on the shape. It’s just that the shape of the airframe causes the shockwaves to merge, so they sound like 1 single loud boom. By altering the shape of the airframe, you can keep those shockwaves separate so you’ll get 2 or more smaller, less loud “thuds” rather than 1 really loud clap.

Answer 2

The boom is caused by the plane hitting the air.

The intensity of the boom is higher or lower depending on (in ELI5 language) the slickness and length of the aircraft.

One feature the boom SST will have, is a very long nose to increase the time between the air compressing at the start of the plane, and where it mixes with the more slower air around the wings and such.

This will reduce the intensity of the boom to a thud.