After two years touring the nation as part of a traveling exhibition, Apollo 11 command module Columbia will return home this March. The spacecraft will be on view at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia, for approximately one year until it is taken off display to be prepared for installation in the upcoming Destination Moon exhibition at the Museum in DC. Destination Moon will open at the Museum in DC in 2022 and will feature Columbia, Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 spacesuit, and many other artifacts from the Apollo missions.

Columbia is scheduled to go on view at the Udvar-Hazy Center on March 3. We'll welcome Columbia back that day with talks about the command module, its conservation, and what's next for this iconic artifact, and a special Moon-themed Flights of Fancy story time and hands-on activity:

11:00 am and 11:30 am: Hare and Tortoise Go to the Moon story time
11:00 am: Gallery talk about the history of Columbia with Apollo curator Teasel Muir-Harmony
1:00 pm: Gallery talk about the conservation of Columbia with conservator Lisa Young
Apollo program Spacecraft
How to attend
You might also like Command Module Columbia in 3D July 20, 2016 The Last Time the Command Module Columbia Toured February 25, 2017 Preparing Columbia for a National Tour February 22, 2017 Smithsonian 3-D Project Sheds New Light on Astronaut Graffiti Found in Museum’s Apollo 11 Command Module