Nineteen years before Space Shuttle; the small; black; rocket-powered; bullet-shaped X-15 showed it was possible to fly into - and out of - space. There had never been anything like the X-15; it had a million-horsepower engine and could fly twice as fast as a rifle bullet. The X-15 set records that stood for years. Specialty Press's bestseller; Hypersonic; has been re-released in a softbound format at a reduced price. This book is the most extensively researched history of the X-15 program yet published. The book was written with the cooperation of surviving X-15 pilots as well as many other program principals and is based on six years of research in Air Force; NASA; and North American archives. It covers the tasks of converting and testing the B-52 carrier airplanes; building the first full-pressure suits to protect the pilot; building the first engineering mission simulators; acquiring the remote lakebed landing sites; and building the radar range. It also covers the flight program in detail; including the most authoritative flight log ever assembled; in many instances; information in this log was derived from the original flight-data recordings. Also covered are each of the experiments that were flown aboard the X-15 late in its career when it became the workhorse of the space program; carrying such things as startrackers destined for the Apollo program and missile-detection systems that would later be sent into orbit on satellites.
#493476 in Books YWAM Publishing 2006-01-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.06 x 2.67 x 5.70l; 2.16 #File Name: 15765821081000 pages
Review
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Pretty good biographiesBy Gary HoltI read these to my kids; and they certainly held their attention. They held my attention; too. I thought they were fascinating. I have now read about fifteen of these books to my kids (ages 6 and 9); and they keep asking for more.I do think; though; that this set is somewhat less interesting than books 1-5 (and subsequent books grow somewhat less interesting; though they are still pretty good). I guess there's a reason the authors chose to do the other missionaries first--they picked the most interesting stories to do first; and when those were successful; they moved on to these. I would recommend starting with the first set first.For example; the biography here about Jim Eliot is pretty good; but the biography of Nate Saint in the first collection was better (both I and my kids agreed). This is an interesting comparison; because they both culminate in the same events (the outreach to the Auca indians; where both Jim Eliot and Nate Saint died). We happened to read this one first; then sometime later read the biography of Nate Saint. This one gets bogged down more in details; maybe Nate Saint had a more varied life; so one could say more about him. I was also surprised that the story about Jim Eliot in here has significantly less detail about the aftermath than does the one about Nate Saint.On the other hand; the biographies of George Mueller and Mary Slessor were extremely interesting. You should definitely read those. (But you really should also read the ones in volumes 1-5.)1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. we were pleased with the conciseBy Gil TurleyAs soon as my wife and I finished the first set of five volumes of this Christian Heroes series; we quickly ordered this second set. Once again; we were pleased with the concise; readable accounts of amazing people of faith. Now I am looking forward to meeting these five heroes in Heaven some day.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. God help us to wake up and live boldly before the trumpet sounds like our brethren did in past generationsBy RedeemedBought these books to read to the kids for Family devotions. Started reading them before bed and cant seem to put them down because they inspire and challenge me so much. We know nothing of the hardships these dear saints faced to get the gospel to the masses. Any wonder why satan's minions have taken over our country and stripped away our freedoms! God help us to wake up and live boldly before the trumpet sounds like our brethren did in past generations!
