June 30, 2009 Vol. 2, Issue 6
On June 8, 1959, a B-52 released the X-15 rocket on its first unpowered glide flight piloted by Scott Crossfield.
This fledgling flight marked the beginning of a nearly decade-long collaboration by NASA, the U.S. Air Force, the Navy, and North American to build and learn from the X-15 hypersonic rocket. In September 1959, the rocket took its second flight, this time igniting its engines after it fell clear of the B-This fledgling flight marked the beginning of a nearly decade-long collaboration by NASA, the U.S. Air Force, the Navy, and North American to build and learn from the X-15 hypersonic rocket. In September 1959, the rocket took its second flight, this time igniting its engines after it fell clear of the B-52 carrier. These hypersonic flights provided staggering amounts of data instrumental in aircraft performance, stability and control, aerodynamic heating, shock interaction, the use of heat-resistant materials, and the use of reaction controls. The rocket was significant in the development of the Apollo and the Space Shuttle programs, providing data about flight at the edge of space, energy management of flight reentry, and horizontal landing of launch vehicles.
The X-15 set a variety of records for reaching speeds of Mach 4 and upwards as well as an altitude record of 354,200 feet in August of 1963. NASA retired it on October 24, 1968, when it completed its 199th flight.
