The X-15 Rocket Plane: Flying the First Wings Into Space
(Part of the Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight Series and Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight Series)
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Book Overview
With the Soviet Union's launch of the first Sputnik satellite in 1957, the Cold War soared to new heights as Americans feared losing the race into space. The X-15 Rocket Plane tells the enthralling yet little-known story of the hypersonic X-15, the winged rocket ship that met this challenge and opened the way into human-controlled spaceflight. Drawing on interviews with those who were there, Michelle Evans captures the drama and excitement of, yes, rocket science: how to handle the heat generated at speeds up to Mach 7, how to make a rocket-propulsion system that could throttle, and how to safely reenter the atmosphere from space and make a precision landing. This book puts a human face on the feats of science and engineering that went into the X-15 program, many of them critical to the development of the space shuttle. And, finally, it introduces us to the largely unsung pilots of the X-15. By the time of the Apollo 11 moon landing, thirty-one American astronauts had flown into space--eight of them astronaut-pilots of the X-15. The X-15 Rocket Plane restores these pioneers to their rightful place in the history of spaceflight.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:1496229843
ISBN13:9781496229847
Release Date:May 2022
Publisher:University of Nebraska Press
Length:484 Pages
Weight:1.60 lbs.
Dimensions:1.0" x 5.9" x 8.9"
Related Subjects
History Science Science & Math Science & Scientists Science & Technology TransportationCustomer Reviews
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