Design and Operation of Aircraft to Minimize Their Sonic Boom

Means of reducing or eliminating the sonic boom through aerodynamic design or aircraft operation are discussed. These include designing aircraft to minimize or eliminate certain features of the overpressure signature, operating aircraft at slightly supersonic speeds so that the sonic boom does not reach the ground, and seeking reductions through the high-altitude, high-speed flight conditions of hypersonic transports. A simple computer program has been developed that determines the area development of the equivalent body of revolution required to minimize various sonic boom signature parameters.