Category Archives: spacecraft

National Air and Space Museum Renovation Update

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Contractors work on installing motorized scaffolding on the Northwest corner of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, July 31, 2019. (Smithsonian photo by Jim Preston)

National Air and Space Museum Renovation Update

Museum Remains Open During Construction

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum’s renovation of the building on the National Mall continues with artifact moves and significant changes to the “Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall.” The North American X-15 will be the first major artifact to be lowered and removed from the museum’s main hall. Visitors will continue to see changes as other artifacts shift and move over the next few months. These adjustments will prepare the space for the construction of a large wall to divide and close the Independence Avenue side of the Hall, the Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight Gallery and the Albert Einstein Planetarium. Work to construct the floor-to-ceiling wall will begin Oct. 7, at which time the museum’s Independence Avenue entrance will close for approximately two years. The entrance on the National Mall side (Jefferson Drive) will remain open for visitors.

This week, the X-15 (which holds the record for top speed by a crewed aircraft) and the Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket will be relocated to the museum’s storage facilities near Dulles Airport.

Construction on the museum’s exterior continues to progress now that artifacts have been removed from the west wing (near 7th Street). The ceremonial first stone will be removed from the exterior Aug. 21. Scaffolding on the exterior of the museum’s west end will allow for the removal and replacement of the stones and the window walls.

How cool – BLUE ORIGIN TO BRING ITS HISTORIC, FLOWN NEW SHEPARD REUSABLE ROCKET AND CREW CAPSULE TO EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH 2017

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EAA AVIATION CENTER, OSHKOSH, Wisconsin — (July 10, 2017) — EAA AirVenture Oshkosh today announced another “Only in Oshkosh” first as it welcomes commercial space company Blue Origin and its historic New Shepard rocket and astronaut crew capsule the week of July 24-30. The exhibit will be one of the main attractions on Boeing Plaza during the Experimental Aircraft Association’s 65th annual fly-in convention at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh.
“EAA AirVenture Oshkosh has always showcased innovation, imagination, and achievement in flight, which makes Blue Origin’s presence at Oshkosh an excellent fit,” said Jack J. Pelton, EAA CEO and Chairman. “As we salute the accomplishments of the Apollo program this year at AirVenture, it is also fitting that we welcome an organization that is developing the next step in the future of manned spaceflight.”
On Nov. 23, 2015, New Shepard became the first rocket to ascend above the Karman line and successfully return to Earth for a vertical landing. The same booster made four subsequent flights in 2016—on Jan. 22, April 2, June 19 and Oct. 5—successfully demonstrating the reuse of a rocket for the first time. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh attendees will get an up-close look at the historic rocket.
In addition, Blue Origin’s exhibit will feature a 1:1 mockup of New Shepard’s astronaut crew capsule, which has seating for six people. AirVenture guests will be able to climb inside, recline in flight-ready seats and experience a simulated flight to space created with real mission footage from New Shepard’s on board cameras. The crew capsule features the largest windows in spacecraft history, which take up more than one-third of the capsule’s surface area offering every astronaut stellar views during flight.
“We are very excited to come to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017 and showcase our reusable New Shepard rocket and crew capsule so everyone can experience what it’s like to be an astronaut,” said Rob Meyerson, president of Blue Origin. “We hope to inspire the explorers of tomorrow, the ones who will help us achieve Blue Origin’s goal of millions of people living and working in space.”
In honor of EAA’s Space Day on July 28, Blue Origin will give away branded merchandise to the first 1,000 visitors to the exhibit on Boeing Plaza beginning at 12:30 p.m. 
About Blue Origin
Blue Origin, LLC (Blue Origin) is a private company developing vehicles and technologies to enable commercial human space transportation. Blue Origin has a long-term vision of greatly increasing the number of people that fly into space so that we humans can better continue exploring the solar system. For more information and a list of job openings, please visit us at www.blueorigin.com.
About EAA
The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) is a growing and diverse community of more than 200,000 aviation enthusiasts who promote and support recreational flying. Founded in 1953 by a group of individuals who were interested in building their own airplanes, EAA expanded its mission of growing participation in aviation to include antiques, classics, warbirds, aerobatic aircraft, ultralights, helicopters, and contemporary manufactured aircraft. The organization is headquartered in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and hosts the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in convention every July. For more information, www.eaa.org.
About EAA AirVenture Oshkosh

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is the “World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration” and EAA’s yearly membership convention. It annually attracts 500,000 visitors from more than 70 nations and in excess of 10,000 aircraft to the weeklong event. Additional EAA AirVenture information, including advance ticket and camping purchase, is available online at www.eaa.org/airventure. EAA members receive lowest prices on admission rates. For more information on EAA and its programs, call 1-800-JOIN-EAA (1-800-564-6322) or visit www.eaa.org. Immediate news is available at www.twitter.com/EAA.