The Story of Dyna-Soar - United States Air Force

From the early 1960's, this vintage United States Air Force documentary provides a fascinating look at what would have been the early predecessor to the Space Shuttle, the USAF's X-20 Dyna-Soar. The Dyna-Soar spacecraft was to have a single pilot, have a length of 35' 4" and a wingspan of 20' 10". It never flew, but was designed to operate 150-300 miles above the Earth. A well done documentary that is nicely animated for the era. What is most striking about this is how far advanced our knowledge was at the time of how a delta-wing glider would operate in space and return to earth. A significant body of research went into the X-20, though the program was officially cancelled on December 10, 1962 by Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, the investment in Dyna-Soar would be a total loss, much of its learnings would be leveraged for the Space Shuttle.

Видео The Story of Dyna-Soar - United States Air Force канала TheConquestofSpace