CorningWare came from a missile nose cone.
In the early 1950s, Corning researcher S. Donald Stookey accidentally overheated photosensitive glass in a too-hot furnace. It should have melted. Instead it became an extremely strong, heat-resistant ceramic. The work led to Pyroceram, which went into ballistic-missile nose cones. Then someone realized it could go in an oven.
CorningWare on Brandseum