Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center

Since Opening Day

Since opening day, work has continued on the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar. The space shuttle Enterprise was cleaned and painted for display, and space artifacts were moved from their temporary locations in the Boeing Aviation Hangar and elsewhere in preparation for launching the displays in the Space Hangar in November 2004. Artifacts on display at the Udvar-Hazy Center can be found in the Objects on Display list. These lists will be updated as individual items are placed on exhibit.

	Space Shuttle Enterprise is readied for long-term display Photos by Dane Penland, National Air and Space Museum The Space Shuttle Enterprise, which made its debut in 1976, had been in storage at Washington Dulles International Airport since its delivery in 1985. Enterprise was in place in the Udvar-Hazy Center for opening day (15 Dec 2003) – see views of the shuttle as it was towed into the Space Hangar. However, extensive cleaning was needed because it had been in storage for many years. These pictures show it as the centerpiece of the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar before cleaning and painting were begun.
	National Air and Space Museum collection specialists are extremely careful when working on a one-of-a-kind historic artifact. In these pictures, staff members are giving Enterprise a thorough scrub-down in preparation for repainting it. The shuttle is big, and workers Tony Carp (working on the tail) and Ed Mautner (at the windows), needed "cherry pickers" to get to their work areas. In the third and fourth pictures, Anne McCombs is removing grime from the right wing and wing root.
	The picture on the right shows why a paint job was needed. The special coatings used for this project were donated by PRC-DeSoto International, Inc, a subsidiary of PPG Industries, Inc. Approximately 4,275 square feet of the space shuttle surface were painted.
	This cockpit view shows that much of the original instrumentation from the approach and landing tests was removed by NASA. In fact, parts of the wings and landing gear have been disassembled and loaned to NASA for their research. Over the years, these assemblies were returned and reassembled on Enterprise by NASA. Recently, NASA borrowed elements of the leading edge of the left wing as part of its investigation of the Columbia accident. The parts will be reinstalled when the investigation is complete.
	Work has been done on the inside of the shuttle, too. Here Ed Mautner, restoration specialist, is inspecting and cleaning cabling in the main landing gear wheel well.

	"Some assembly required" – various assemblies were removed, examined, repaired, preserved, and then remounted on the shuttle. In these photos, the Orbital Maneuvering System pods are being removed for repair.
	As work on the Enterprise was completed, other space artifacts were moved into the Space Hangar in preparation for its launch. In these pictures, Pegasus is moved into place. Pegasus, made by Orbital Sciences, is a launch vehicle used for inserting small satellites into low-earth orbit.

	"People" are Happening at the Udvar-Hazy Center Photos by Dane Penland, National Air and Space Museum Visitors keep coming to explore one of the most spectacular museums in the world. In the third picture, on June 9, 2004 (less than six months after opening day), Joe Anderson, Associate Director for the Udvar-Hazy Center, congratulates Julie Malinowski of Ashburn, VA, as the millionth visitor. With Julie are her three-year-old daughter, Claire, and her parents, Nicolai and Valentina Vaseliv, who were visiting from Rochester, NY.
	Visitor Services volunteers and staff are ready and willing to give visitors a smile and a helping hand to "Inspire and Educate" and make our guests' visits thoroughly enjoyable. They can even help visitors with information about the surrounding area.
	Visitors can find a tremendous amount of history in the many artifacts displayed throughout the Udvar-Hazy Center.
	Looking southwest, here is a June 2004 aerial view of where exciting things are happening. If you have not already been there, we hope to see you soon. Aerial photo by Eric Long, NASM