Dayton/Cincinnati

This talk showcases ASU’s newly developed hypersonic vehicle Stability & Control screening methodologies to
reconstruct and reassess Neil Armstrong’s X-15 flight as showcased in the 2018 movie “First Man.” We provide insight on
the hypersonic stability and controllability problems experienced by high-speed bank-to-turn vehicles. We also aim to
explain key aspects of the North American X-15 flight 3-4-8 and compare the truth of the flight to what was depicted in
cinema. We will show Armstrong’s inadvertent “atmospheric skip” was the result of overlooked inherent lateral-directional
airframe instabilities and explain why the X-15 program (shortly after Armstrong’s near crash) flew most further flights with
a revised ventral tail configuration.