FASTEST UNPILOTED, JET- POWERED AIRCRAFT: X-43A
In 2004, NASA ' s X-43A hit Mach 9.6, around 7,000 mph. No humans were on board since it was too fast and risky for a human pilot to fly.
FASTEST HUMANS HAVE EVER TRAVELED: APOLLO 10
Heading home from the Moon in 1969, the Apollo
10 crew hit 24,816.1 mph. That ' s still the human speed record today, more than 50 years later.
FASTEST OBJECT EVER BUILT: PARKER SOLAR PROBE
This spacecraft uses the Sun ' s own gravity like a slingshot and has topped 430,000 mph! That ' s fast enough to fly from Philadelphia to Washington, D. C. in one second.
FALL 2026— ISSUE NO. 16 | 13