> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.ntop.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # X-59 Hackathon Starter with Quick Aero Estimates > AI context for X-59 Hackathon Starter with Quick Aero Estimates. Not linked in navigation. > This page is for AI assistant context only. To use this package, visit [community.ntop.com](https://community.ntop.com/#/detail/x59-hackathon-starter). > **Community submission — not verified by nTop.** This package was submitted by an outside community member and has not been reviewed or verified by nTop. Treat its accuracy, safety, and compatibility claims with appropriate caution. ## Summary Parametric X-59 low-boom aircraft with a mass statement and a Run Command link to a Python AeroSandbox script that reports supersonic cruise L/D, drag and neutral point within seconds of any geometry change. ## Package Details | Field | Value | | - | - | | **ID** | `x59-hackathon-starter` | | **Type** | Bundle | | **Author** | nTop | | **Version** | 1.1.0 | | **nTop Version** | 6.2+ | | **Domain** | Aerospace | | **Application** | Analysis | | **Complexity** | Intermediate | | **Tags** | `aircraft`, `aerodynamics`, `supersonic`, `aerosandbox`, `run-command`, `python`, `mass-properties`, `ai-assisted` | | **License** | MIT | | **Verified** | No | *** A parametric nTop model of an X-59-style low-boom supersonic demonstrator. It's a starter file for a student hackathon: change the wing, canards or tail, and see how cruise efficiency and pitch stability respond. The notebook includes a **Mass Estimates** section, a group mass statement with payload, engine, structures and fuel at point locations. It also has an **Aero Analysis** section, where an nTop **Run Command** block sends the current geometry, mass and CG to a small Python script. The script uses [AeroSandbox](https://github.com/peterdsharpe/AeroSandbox) and reports cruise CL, CD, L/D, drag, pitching moment, neutral point and static margin in about 2 seconds. Version 1.1 adds a twisted main wing with separate root, panel-break and tip twist, passes the fuselage shape from nTop to the script, adds an **Area Ruling** table of cross-sectional area along the aircraft, and includes a reference X-59 mesh to compare designs against. The aero integration (`x59_aero.py` and the Run Command chain) was built with Claude. X-59 model in nTop with CG and neutral point markers Example aero results: planform with CG and neutral point, plus CL, CD, L/D and Cm against angle of attack ## Files | File | Purpose | | - | - | | `x59-hackathon-starter.ntop` | The notebook: fuselage, wing, canards, tails, engine duct, mass statement, reference mesh, Area Ruling table and the Aero Analysis section | | `x59_aero.py` | Quick aero script called by the notebook; also usable from a terminal | | `requirements.txt` | Python dependency (`aerosandbox`) | | `aero-output-example.png` | Example of the plot the script writes | The site's download button gives you a zip with the notebook, `x59_aero.py`, `requirements.txt`, this README and the license. ## Setup (about 5 minutes) 1. Install Python 3.9 or newer from [python.org](https://www.python.org/downloads/) and tick **Add python.exe to PATH**. 2. Install AeroSandbox: ```bash theme={null} pip install aerosandbox ``` If you skip this, the script installs AeroSandbox on its first run, which takes a minute or two. 3. Create the folder `C:\X59_Aero` and put `x59_aero.py` in it. To use a different folder, change the notebook's **Aero Script Folder** variable to match. 4. Check the script works (it prints the baseline estimate): ```bash theme={null} python C:\X59_Aero\x59_aero.py ``` 5. Open `x59-hackathon-starter.ntop` in nTop 6.2 or later and save a working copy. 6. When the Aero Analysis section runs, nTop asks permission to run the command. Allow it. ## Using it nTop asks permission again **every time the command changes**, which is every time you change an input it uses. The command line carries the aircraft parameters, so treat the prompt as "run the analysis?". Each run takes about 2 seconds. | Direction | Name | Meaning | | - | - | - | | Input | Main Wing variables | Root chord, span (full), inner/outer quarter-chord sweep, inner/outer taper, panel break, root/break/tip twist, dihedral, airfoil, X/Z position, root incidence | | Input | Fuselage rails | Top, Side and Bottom Rail control points; the script gets points sampled along each rail | | Input | Canard variables | Root chord, span, sweep, taper, twist, dihedral, airfoil, X/Z position, root incidence | | Input | Stabilizer variables | H-stab root chord, span, sweep, taper, X/Z position | | Input | Mass Estimates | Payload, Engine, Structures and Fuel masses and CG points; they set **Aircraft Mass** and **CG X Location** | | Input | Cruise Mach, Cruise Altitude | Flight condition (default Mach 1.41 at 55,000 ft) | | Input | Open Plot Window | 1 = open the results image after each run, 0 = don't | | Input | Aero Fuselage Points | Number of points sampled along each fuselage rail for the script (default 41) | | Input | Area Ruling Station Count | Number of X stations for the Area Ruling table (default 101) | | Output | Aero Results | Text report: cruise CL, CD, L/D, drag, Cm, neutral point, static margin | | Output | Cruise L/D, Best L/D | L/D at the cruise point, and the best L/D over the angle-of-attack sweep | | Output | Neutral Point X, Neutral Point Marker, CG Marker | Pitch stability; keep the CG ahead of the neutral point | | Output | Area Ruling Table | Cross-sectional area (m²) of the whole aircraft against X (mm), from nose to tail | Each run also writes `aero_results/latest_report.txt` and `latest_results.png` next to the script. ### Baseline mass statement | Item | Mass | Basis | | - | - | - | | Payload | 550 kg | Pilot, ejection seat, avionics and test instrumentation (estimate) | | Engine | 1,110 kg | One GE F414-GE-100, dry | | Structures and systems | 8,500 kg | Airframe, gear and systems, at the OML volume centroid (estimate) | | Fuel | 4,500 kg | Full internal fuel (estimate) | | **Total** | **14,660 kg** | Close to the published \~32,300 lb max takeoff weight | Lower **Fuel Mass** to model the aircraft partway through the mission. ### Main wing twist The main wing is a **Twisted 2 Panel Wing** custom block. Twist is set at three spanwise stations, **Wing Root Twist**, **Wing Break Twist** and **Wing Tip Twist**, varies linearly between them and pivots about mid-chord. The baseline is 0, -2.412 and -3 deg. The script reads a negative value as washout (nose down). ### Area ruling The **Area Ruling** section cuts the assembled aircraft (`X59 OML`) with planes normal to X at evenly spaced stations from nose to tail and measures each section's area. Open **Area Ruling Table** to view or plot the curve. Raise **Area Ruling Station Count** for a smoother curve; 101 stations take about 12 seconds to rebuild. Use it to spot sudden changes in area along the aircraft, which add wave drag. ### Reference mesh The **Verification** section holds a reference X-59 surface mesh, placed over the model. Use it to check how far a design has moved from the baseline shape. ### From a terminal Any key you leave out keeps its baseline value. Lengths are in mm and angles in deg. ```bash theme={null} python x59_aero.py wing_span=10000 wing_tip_twist=-4 canard_x=10500 cg_x=18000 mass=13000 open_plot=0 ``` The fuselage keys (`fuse_top_x`, `fuse_top_z`, `fuse_side_x`, `fuse_side_y`, `fuse_bot_x`, `fuse_bot_z`) take comma-separated lists in mm. Left out, they default to the rails' control points. ## Evidence and limits * The notebook was prepared and checked in an internal nTop build (43139, with the Notebook API). This publication copy was not reopened in a public nTop 6.2 release. * With the 1.1 notebook, the script run on the exact command line the notebook builds gives cruise L/D 7.16, best L/D 7.21, neutral point 20,898 mm and static margin +30.0% MAC at Mach 1.41, 14,660 kg and CG 18,281 mm. Every block in the notebook, including the Area Ruling table, built without errors. * This is a quick, semi-empirical estimate (AeroSandbox `AeroBuildup`, including wave drag). Use it to rank designs. Expect absolute values to be off by 10–20%. * The fuselage follows points sampled along the notebook's Top, Side and Bottom Rails, as smooth rounded sections. The Fuselage Top/Bottom Rho values aren't passed. * The vertical tail, T-tail and engine duct are fixed in, or left out of, the script. Edits to them in nTop don't change the estimate. * Moments are untrimmed (no control-surface deflection). * The neutral point comes from a straight-line fit of Cm against CL over the sweep, from -1 to 7 deg angle of attack. * Main wing twist is applied at the root, panel break and tip, linear in between. Canard twist is still a single value: positive is read as washout, and the tip gets half of it. * Area Ruling uses flat cuts normal to X, not the Mach-angle cuts of a full supersonic area-rule analysis. * The masses are public-figure-based estimates, not X-59 data. ## License and credits The notebook and script are released under the MIT license; see [LICENSE](LICENSE). * This is an independent, approximate model inspired by the NASA/Lockheed Martin X-59 QueSST. It isn't affiliated with or endorsed by NASA or Lockheed Martin. * [AeroSandbox](https://github.com/peterdsharpe/AeroSandbox) (MIT) is a dependency, not bundled. *** ## Source [https://community.ntop.com/#/detail/x59-hackathon-starter](https://community.ntop.com/#/detail/x59-hackathon-starter) ## Download [Download x59-hackathon-starter.ntop](https://github.com/nTopology/Utilities-community/releases/download/x59-hackathon-starter-v1.1.0/x59-hackathon-starter.ntop) This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.