{"product_id":"9780803228405","title":"The X-15 Rocket Plane: Flying the First Wings into Space","description":"\u003cp\u003eWith 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. \u003ci\u003eThe X-15 Rocket Plane\u003c\/i\u003e 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDrawing 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis 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 \u003ci\u003eApollo 11\u003c\/i\u003e moon landing, thirty-one American astronauts had flown into space—eight of them astronaut-pilots of the X-15. \u003ci\u003eThe X-15 Rocket Plane\u003c\/i\u003e restores these pioneers, and the others who made it happen, to their rightful place in the history of spaceflight.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBrowse more spaceflight books at upinspace.org.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"UNP - Nebraska","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47016094171376,"sku":"9780803228405","price":36.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780803228405_p0.jpg?v=1763739222","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780803228405","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}