NASA analyzing Joby noise
NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) National Campaign is conducting a two-week test campaign to study the acoustic signature of Joby’s S4 electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft.
The AAM National Campaign “is designed to promote public confidence in emerging aviation markets, such as passenger air taxis, through flight testing in realistic scenarios and data analysis that will inform the development of regulatory standards for emerging aviation platforms,” according to a Joby press release.
“Data from industry leaders like Joby is critical for NASA’s research activities and future standardization of emerging aircraft configurations. Industry partnerships are imperative for the United States to become a leader in the development of a safe and sustainable AAM ecosystem,” said Davis Hackenberg, NASA AAM mission integration manager.
Joby is the first company to fly an all-electric eVTOL aircraft in the AAM National Campaign.
“NASA engineers will deploy their Mobile Acoustics Facility and more than 50 pressure ground-plate microphones in a grid array that allows for multi-directional measurement of the Joby aircraft’s sound emissions,” according to the press release. The “readings, in combination with the noise profile of urban communities, can be used to verify how proposed aircraft operations will blend into the existing background noise.” Once testing is complete, Joby and a team of NASA acoustics experts will analyze the data and share their findings later in the year.
Joby aims to earn FAA certification for its eVTOL in 2023.
