NASA and the 6 Million Dollar Man

The M2-F2 was flown to test the Lifting Body design, in which the aircraft has no wings but instead derives its lift from the shape of the fuselage (wide, flat on the bottom and curved on top). It was intended to be stable at extreme speeds and survive intense heat — the conditions expected when re-entering the atmosphere from orbit. The M2-F2 suffered only one serious accident in 12 years. The research conducted with this design (and with its successor, the M2-F3) proved that it was possible to glide down from orbital altitude and velocity safely, without power, and was to become the foundation of the design of the Space Shuttle.