Ground engine test run on the Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1-2 airplane at NACA Muroc Flight Test Unit service area.
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Ground engine test run on the Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1-2 airplane at NACA Muroc Flight Test Unit service area. Notice the frost on the lower part of the aircraft aft of the nose section. The frost forms from the mixture of the propellants (including liquid oxygen) in the internal tanks. This photograph was taken in 1947. The aircraft shown is still painted in its original saffron (orange) paint finish. This was later changed to white, which was more visible against the dark blue sky than saffron turned out to be.1947NASA Photo› X-1 Project Description