A delay of even one second could affect the information being collected. It could change the plane's path just enough to destroy the pilot's chance of a safe landing.
The X-15 set height and speed records greater than those expected. The number three plane climbed more than one hundred seven kilometers above the Earth. The number two plane flew seven thousand two hundred thirty-two kilometers an hour. That was more than seven times the speed of sound.
The X-15 was the first major investment by the United States in manned space flight technology. Much of what was learned from its flights speeded up the development of the space program.
The X-15 tested materials for space vehicles. It tested spacesuits worn later by America's astronauts. It tested instruments for controlling a vehicle in the weightlessness of space. And it proved that experienced pilots had the skills necessary to fly in space.
Twelve military and civilian test pilots flew the X-15s. A few became astronauts.
The X-15 program lasted about ten years. There were about two hundred flights. Some of the flights carried scientific experiments. One was a container on the end of the wing. It gathered dust and tiny meteoroids from the edge of space. Another was a set of special instruments that helped measure the effects of the sun's radiation on the outside of the aircraft.
The only tragedy connected with the X-15 program happened in nineteen sixty-seven. The pilot was Michael Adams of the United States Air Force. It was his seventh X-15 flight.
最新
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25