14
NASA's experimental supersonic jet edges toward first flight | Digital Trends
(www.digitaltrends.com)
The ground noise is expected to be around 60 dB(A), about 1/1000 as loud as current supersonic aircraft. This is achieved by using a long, narrow airframe and canards to keep the shock waves from coalescing.[4] It should create a 75 Perceived Level decibel (PLdB) thump on ground, as loud as closing a car door, compared with 105-110 PLdB for the Concorde.[5] Wikipedia
Cool. A car door closing is far more acceptable than thinking you're being bombed. But yeah, the nose on it is really long. Considering that this experimental craft can only carry a pilot, any kind of passenger craft using the same technique would have to be absolutely enormous.