BGuthrie Photos: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Gallery 100: (a) Milestones of Flight

DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Gallery 100: (a) Milestones of Flight:

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. GAL100_051016_025.JPG: North American X-15 (in front): World's Fastest and Highest Flying Aircraft: The North American X-15, a rocket-powered research aircraft, bridged the gap between manned flight in the atmosphere and space flight. After its initial test flights in 1959, the X-15 became the first winged aircraft to attain hypersonic velocities of Mach 4, 5, and 6 (four to six times the speed of sound) and to operate at altitudes well above 30,500 meters (100,000) feet. The X-15 was designed to explore the problems of flight at very high speeds and altitudes. It was carried to an altitude of 12,000 meters (40,000 feet) under the wing of a Boeing B-52 bomber. During one test, it attained an altitude of over 108 kilometers (67 miles), flying so high that it functioned more as a spacecraft than an airplane. In 1967, it reached Mach 6.7 (7,297 kilometers or 4,534 miles per hour).
2. GAL100_051016_055.JPG: Bell X-1 Glamorous Glennis: First Airplane to Fly Faster than the Speed of Sound: On October 14, 1947, the Bell X-1 became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. Piloted by U.S. Air Force Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager, the X-1 reached a speed of 1,127 kilometers (700 miles) per hour, Mach 1.06, at an altitude of 13,000 meters (43,000 feet). Yeager named the airplane Glamorous Glennis in tribute to his wife. Air-launched at an altitude of 7,000 meters (23,000 feet) from the bomb bay of a Boeing B-29, the X-1 used its rocket engine to climb to its test altitude. It flew a total of 78 times, and on March 26, 1947, with Yeager at the controls, it attained a speed of 1,540 kilometers (957 miles) per hour, Mach 1.45, at an altitude of 21,900 meters (71,900 feet). This was the highest velocity and altitude reached by a manned airplane up to that time.
3. GAL100_051016_119.JPG: Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis: First Nonstop Solo Transatlantic Flight: On May 21, 1927, Charles A. Lindbergh completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in history, flying his Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis 5,810 kilometers (3,610 miles) between Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York, and Paris, France in 33 hours, 30 minutes. With this flight, Lindbergh won the $25,000 prize offered by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first aviator to fly an aircraft directly across the Atlantic between New York and Paris. When he landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris, Lindbergh became a world hero who would remain in the public eye for decades. The aftermath of the flight was the "Lindbergh boom" in aviation: aircraft industry stocks rose in value and interest in flying skyrocketed. Lindbergh's subsequent U.S. and Central and South American tours in the Spirit demonstrated the potential of the airplane as a safe, reliable mode of transportation.
4. GAL100_051016_121.JPG: Breitling Orbiter 3 Gondola: First Nonstop Flight Around the World By Balloon: On March 1, 1999, Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones lifted off from the Swiss alpine village of Chateau d'Oex in the Breitling Orbiter 3 balloon. On March 21, 1999 -- 19 days, 21 hours, and 55 minutes later -- they landed in the Egyptian desert after traveling 45,755 kilometers (28,431 miles) and completing the first nonstop flight around the world in a balloon. The success of Breitling Orbiter 3 was built upon two previous attempts: Breitling Orbiter in 1997 and Breitling Orbiter 2 in 1998. These experiences enabled the Breitling team to develop trustworthy technical systems and a basic strategy in which Piccard and Jones would pilot their balloon up to altitudes of 11,000 meters (36,000 feet) and to where jet stream winds would drive it at speeds up to 176 kilometers (105 miles) per hour.
5. GAL100_051016_131.JPG: Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket: Piloted by A. Scott Crossfield on November 20, 1953, the Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket became the first aircraft to fly faster than Mach 2, twice the speed of sound. Air-launched from a U.S. Navy Boeing P28-1S (B-29), the swept-wing, rocket-powered D-558-2 reached Mach 2.005 in a shallow dive at 18,898 meters (62,000 feet). The D-558 series of aircraft was developed by Douglas under the direction of Edward H. Heinemann for the U.S. Navy to explore transonic and supersonic flight. The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the predecessor to NASA), used this Skyrocket, the second one built, to explore the flight characteristics of swept-wing aircraft. It set several other speed and altitude records before the program ended in 1956.
6. GAL100_051016_183.JPG: The team behind it autographed SpaceShipOne
7. GAL100_051016_195.JPG: Gemini IV: First American Spacewalk: Gemini IV orbited the Earth on June 3-7, 1965. While James A. McDivitt remained inside, Edward H. White II opened the right-hand hatch and floated out into space, where he remained for 20 minutes, the first American astronaut to "walk" in space. Three months earlier, Soviet cosmonaut Aleksei A. Leonov has performed the first spacewalk. White was connected to the spacecraft's life-support and communications systems by a gold-covered "umbilical cord," and he used a hand-held jet thruster to maneuver in space. The Gemini missions tested procedures and equipment needed for upcoming Apollo missions to the Moon.
8. GAL100_051016_223.JPG: Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia: First Manned Lunar Landing Mission: In the Apollo command module, astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. traveled to the Moon and back on July 16-24, 1969. During that mission, humans first walked on the Moon, and Columbia carried the first samples of lunar rocks and soil back to Earth. The heat shield and exterior of the spacecraft are scarred from the 2,760 degree Celsius (7000 degree Fahrenheit) heat generated by entering the Earth's atmosphere at 40,000 kilometers (25,000 miles) per hour.
9. GAL100_051016_225.JPG: Bell XP-59A Airacomet: America's First Turbojet Aircraft: This aircraft, the first Bell XP-59A, is the direct ancestor of all American jet aircraft. Built for testing purposes, it proved that turbojet-powered flight was feasible and efficient. Designed and built by the Bell Aircraft Corporation, the XP-59A was first flown at Muroc Dry Lake, California, on October 1, 1942, by Bell's test pilot Robert M. Stanley. The next day, Col. Laurence C. Craigie became the first U.S. military pilot to fly a turbojet aircraft. In October 1943, Ann Baumgartner Carl of the Women Airforce Service Pilots flew a XP-59A and became the first American woman to fly a jet airplane. The XP-59A was powered by the first American jet engine, the General Electric 1-A, which was based on the W2B design of British jet pioneer Frank Whittle.
10. GAL100_051118_006.JPG: Pioneer 10
11. GAL100_051118_016.JPG: Lockheed F-104 Starfighter: Known as "the missile with a man in it," the stubby-winged Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was the first U.S. jet fighter in service to fly Mach 2, twice the speed of sound. Designed as a high-performance day fighter, the F-104 had excellent acceleration and top speed. It first flew on February 7, 1954. While built for the U.S. Air Force, most Starfighters were flown by other countries, particularly Canada, Italy, Germany, and Japan. Many were built under license overseas. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) flew this F-104A for 19 years as a flying test bed and a chase plane. It was used to test the reaction controls later used on the North American X-15. This aircraft was the seventh F-104 built and was transferred to the Museum after its last flight, to Andrews Air Force Base, on August 26, 1975.
12. GAL100_051118_030.JPG: Gemini IV
13. GAL100_051118_043.JPG: Goddard 1926 rocket
14. GAL100_051118_053.JPG: Mercury Friendship 7. Friendship 7 is the Mercury spacecraft in which astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr. became the first American to orbit the Earth. On February 20, 1962, Glenn circled the Earth three times. The space flight lasted 4 hours and 55 minutes and provided data on how the human body functions under conditions of weightlessness. Soviet cosmonaut Yuri A. Gagarin was the first person to travel in space. His historic flight occurred on April 12, 1961.
15. GAL100_051118_059.JPG: Pershing-II and SS-20 Missiles: The Pershing-II and SS-20 missiles exhibited here are two of more than 2,600 nuclear missiles banned by the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty signed by the United States and the Soviet Union in December 1987. The INF Treaty was the first international agreement to eliminate an entire class of nuclear weapons -- those having a range of 500-5,500 kilometers (300-3,400 miles). The mobile U.S. Pershing-II and Soviet SS-20 were regarded as the most threatening missiles in this class. The Pershing-II [the smaller one on the right], deployed at American bases in West Germany since 1983, carried a single thermonuclear warhead. The missile here is a training version. The SS-20 "Saber", [the big one on the left] deployed at 48 bases in the Soviet Union since 1976, carried three independently targeted thermonuclear warheads. The missile here is a training version.
16. GAL100_051118_069.JPG: Goddard Rockets: First Successful Liquid-Propellant Rocket: Robert H. Goddard is considered the father of American rocketry. Working alone and reluctant to publicize his activity, Goddard experimented with liquid-propellant rockets before anyone else. Displayed here is a full-scale replica of his original rocket, launched on March 26, 1926. Unlike present rockets, the engine is at the top of the vehicle and the fuel tanks are below. Beside it is a more sophisticated [and larger] rocket from a series tested from 1939 through 1941. Part of its casing has been removed to reveal some of the internal features found in most modern rocket designs.
17. GAL100_051118_089.JPG: Explorer 1 (backup). First Artificial U.S. Satellite. Hanging above the main lobby are copies of the first artificial satellites to orbit the Earth. Sputnik 1 was launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957, and Explorer 1 was launched by the United States on January 31, 1958. Sputnik 1 operated for 22 days, providing information about internal and external temperatures and atmospheric and electron densities at high altitudes. Explorer 1 operated for 105 days, transmitting data on micrometeoroids, cosmic radiation, and internal and external temperatures. Data obtained from Explorer 1 and Explorer 3 (launched in March 1958) revealed the existence of the Van Allen radiation belts. This was the first major scientific discovery of the space age.
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Description of Subject Matter: Milestones of Flight
July 1, 1976 – 2021
This gallery features famous airplanes and spacecraft that exemplify the major achievements in the history of flight.
Highlights include:
* Mercury Friendship 7: the first manned orbiting flight, carrying John Glenn, Feb. 20, 1962
* Gemini IV: the first U.S. space walk by Edward H. White II, June 3-7, 1965
* Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia: 1st manned lunar landing, 1969, carrying Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, and Michael Collins
* Goddard Rockets: a full-scale model of the world's 1st liquid propellant rocket, flown on March 16, 1926, and a large rocket constructed in 1941 by Robert Goddard, father of American rocketry
* Bell XS-1 (X-1) Glamorous Glennis: 1st manned flight faster than the speed of sound, flown by Chuck Yeager, Oct. 14, 1947
* Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis: Lindbergh's plane for 1st solo trans-atlantic non-stop flight 1927
* Explorer I: back-up model of 1st U.S. satellite to orbit the earth, 1958
* Sputnik I: Russian replica of 1st artificial satellite to orbit the Earth, 1957
* North American X-15: 1st winged, manned aircraft to exceed 6 times the speed of sound and the 1st airplane to explore the fringes of space, 1967
* Mariner 2: model of 1st spacecraft to study another planet when it flew by Venus, launched Dec. 14, 1962
* Pioneer 10 (prototype): 1st spacecraft to fly by Jupiter and 1st aircraft to venture beyond the planets, launched March 3, 1972
* Viking Lander: an unmanned proof test capsule used in ground tests before and during the Viking flights to Mars in 1976
* Bell XP-59A Airacomet (#1 of 3): 1st American turbojet aircraft, direct ancestor to all American jet aircraft, flown by Robert M. Stanley, Oct. 1, 1942
* Breitling Orbiter 3 Balloon Gondola: 1st balloon to fly around the world nonstop in 1999
* SpaceShipOne: 1st privately built and operated vehicle to reach space

A major renovation is now underway. The new Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall, to be ...More...
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2005 photos: Equipment this year: I used four cameras -- two Fujifilm S7000 cameras (which were plagued by dust inside the lens), a new Fujifilm S5200 (nice but not great and I hated the proprietary xD memory chips), and a Canon PowerShot S1 IS (returned because it felt flimsy to me). I gave my Epson camera to my catsitter. Both of the S7000s were in for repairs over Christmas. Trips this year: Florida (for Lotusphere), a driving trip down south (seeing sites in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Georgia), Williamsburg, and Chicago. Number of photos taken this year: 147,000.
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