U-2 Spy Plane - Eyes at 70,000 Feet

Nearly 60 years after taking to the skies, the U-2 spy plane continues to roam the edge of space while conducting important reconnaissance.

Also known as the "Dragon Lady," the U-2 flies at 70,000 feet gathering surveillance data anywhere in the world with more flexibility than satellites. Built by Lockheed Martin Skunk Works group and entering service in the late 1950s, the U-2 has been a national treasure for more than 50 years.

Today's U-2 is 33 percent larger and carries four times the intelligence collection payload than the original U-2, with a wide variety of sensors. U-2s provide many key capabilities, from aerial eavesdropping to surveying dirt patterns in Iraq and Afghanistan to flag signs of hidden IED's.

NASA also uses the U-2 as a high-tech, high-altitude platform for research, including physics experiments.