X-43A - NASA X-43A rockets to Mach 9.8 at Edwards

OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN—An X-43A hypersonic research aircraft and its modified Pegasus booster rocket accelerate after launch from NASA’s B-52B launch aircraft here Nov. 16. The mission originated from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Minutes later the X-43A separated from the Pegasus booster and accelerated to its intended speed of Mach 10. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration photo by Carla Thomas)