This United-Lufthansa lapel pin is a souvenir for the around-the-world flight of Magellan T. Bear on these airlines in 1993. In October of that year, the toy teddy bear Magellan T. Bear visits five continents and 22 countries during an around the world adventure sponsored by United Airlines. The teddy bear made that trip and other journeys as part of an ambitious elementary school educational project to stimulate interest in geography, science, and social studies.
Magellan T. Bear became the first official teddy bear in space, flying as the "education specialist" aboard Space Shuttle Discovery on the STS-63 mission in February 1995. Students and faculty of Elk Creek Elementary School in Pine, Colorado, worked with NASA and Spacehab to have the teddy bear certified for spaceflight. The school also arranged for the bear to fly around the world, visit the South Pole, fly on United Airlines' first Boeing 777 flight, and attend U.S. Space Camp.
Magellan T. Bear was presented to the National Air and Space Museum in May 1998 by librarian Penny Wiedeke and principal Jerry Williams.
This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.