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Free-Falling Body Nose Dives in Desert

Description (1955) This missile-like free-falling body was dropped from an altitude of seven miles. The purpose of this drop was to investigate the efficiency of air inlets of a type suitable for high speed jet aircraft. Its descent rate is checked first by automatic dive brakes (seen partially open) and then by parachute. The body has buried its nose in the California desert. The delicate onboard instruments which recorded performance data were recovered intact.

 

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Credit: NASA

Image Number: A-15481

Date: 1955

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Uploaded on May 2, 2025
Taken sometime in 1955