On this day in space, the X-15 makes its first flight

science and technology

There has been an important space event on this day since 1959, when NASA's X-15 pilot aircraft made its first flight.

X-15 missile

According to Space, the X-15 was part of a series of supersonic pilot aircraft.

The journey marks the beginning of nearly a decade of research that has detected high altitude and speed at the edge of space, with the maximum speed flown by the X-15 reaching 4520 miles per hour.

The X-15 program had a 12-pilot group, including Neil Armstrong between 1959 and 1968, with 199 flights in the process.

The aircraft flew for nearly 10 years, at a maximum altitude of 67 miles, where it could reach the edge of outer space in the 1960s.