On Oct. 14, 1947, Capt. Charles E. Yeager in the Bell X-1 rocket-propelled experimental aircraft was the first man to exceed the speed of sound in level flight, crossing with little trouble an invisible threshold thought to be an impediment to aircraft development and to contemporary aircraft structures.

Yes, the sound barrier was famously broken for the first time in history on October 14, 1947. The aircraft was the Bell X-1, a rocket-powered research plane nicknamed "Glamorous Glennis," and it was piloted by Captain Charles "Chuck" Yeager. The flight took place over the Mojave Desert at Muroc Air Force Base (now Edwards Air Force Base) in California. To reach the necessary altitude and speed, the X-1 was carried into the air by a B-29 Superfortress and "dropped" before Yeager ignited the rocket engines. He reached a speed of Mach 1.06 (approximately 700 mph at that altitude), proving that supersonic flight was possible and that aircraft could survive the extreme aerodynamic forces associated with the "sound barrier." This achievement revolutionized aviation and paved the way for the development of supersonic fighter jets and, eventually, the space program. The original Bell X-1 is now on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.