Meet at the nose of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird in the Boeing Aviation Hangar.
About the Ask an Expert Series: Twice a month at 12:30 pm at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a Museum staff member talks to the public about the history, collection, or personalities related to a specific artifact or exhibition in the Museum. For topics of upcoming Ask an Expert talks at the Udvar-Hazy Center, click here.
The Apollo 11 crew await pickup by a helicopter from the USS Hornet, prime recovery ship for the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing mission. The fourth man in the life raft is a United States Navy underwater demolition team swimmer. All four men are wearing Biological Isolation Garments (BIG). The Apollo 11 Command Module "Columbia," with astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. splashed down at 11:49 a.m. (CDT), July 24, 1969, about 812 nautical miles southwest of Hawaii and only 12 nautical miles from the USS Hornet.