The time taken for an average flight from Miami to Seattle is about six hours and 40 minutes, but imagine if it were possible to reduce that time to 50 minutes or less. A new study by Researchers at NASA and Binghamton University, State University of New York, could result in a substantial decrease in flight times.

The study, funded partly by the U.S. Air Force, is one of the principal steps toward the development of planes capable of moving at hypersonic speeds, five to 10 times the speed of sound.