Stories of daring, stories of technological feats, stories of prevailing against the odds ... these are the stories we tell at the National Air and Space Museum. Dive in to the stories below to discover, learn, and be inspired. 

Showing 1641 - 1650 of 1761

Thaddeus Lowe Balloon Reconnaissance at Battle of Fair Oaks

November 18, 2010

A New History of the Museum

Story

 

Built in 1918, the Aircraft Building housed most of the Museum's aviation collection for decades.  Taken in 1938, this photo also shows a tank and artillery piece displayed by the front door.

Featured in National Air and Space Museum: An Autobiography

Apollo EVA Boot

November 12, 2010

A Blending of Photography and X-Ray

Story

Curators at the Air and Space Museum are learning how to combine x-rays and photographs of object to gain a glimpse into their preservation and history. 

German WWII Focke-Wulf

November 08, 2010

Vintage Aircraft Tool Cataloging, Re-housing and Preservation Project

Story

In the years following WWII the United States and her Allies conducted engineering and flight tests of many different types of captured or surrendered Axis aircraft, primarily from Germany and Japan. Many of these aircraft were acquired by Allied and US technical intelligence collection teams.  It was ordered that at least one of each type of enemy aircraft be captured and evaluated by these teams, and that each aircraft type be maintained in flyable condition for a minimum of one year. To make this possible all technical data and support materiel available (such as tool kits, parts, etc.) had to also be captured to meet this requirement.

<em>Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall</em>

November 01, 2010

Restoring and Preserving Aircraft

Story

Next year, the National Air and Space Museum will begin restoring and preserving aircraft in the brand-new Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar, part of the Phase Two complex now under construction at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.  To treat the aircraft, the Museum applies a philosophy and range of techniques that have steadily evolved through the years.

Halloween postcard

October 27, 2010

Watch the Skies for Flying Pumpkins!

Story | From the Archives

Black cats pilot a squadron of flying jack-o'-lanterns in this fairly unscary Halloween postcard

Streamline Design

October 25, 2010

The Airplane and Streamlined Design

Story

To American industrial designers of the 1930s airplanes were not simply machines of transport, but emblems of technological innovation and progress. The National Air and Space Museum’s newly redone Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight Gallery includes a unit devoted to “The Airplane and Streamlined Design,” which demonstrates how industrial designers appropriated the imagery of the modern airliner for their products.

Sun - July 30, 2010

October 19, 2010

Learning to Capture the Sun

Story

The Public Observatory Project is just over a year old now, and in that time we’ve been  experimenting with the telescope to discover what is visible in the daytime sky and devise ways that our visitors can have the best experience possible.  One of our goals is to use our equipment to take images of the Sun, so that we can share our star’s day-to-day activities with the visiting public as well as those who can’t make it to the Mall to look through our telescopes.  

Charles "Chuck" Yeager with Bell X-1

October 14, 2010

Chuck Yeager

Story

On October 14, 1947, Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager became the first person to fly faster than the speed of sound in his Bell X-1, which he named Glamorous Glennis, in tribute to his wife. He reached a speed of 1,127 kilometers (700 miles) per hour, or Mach 1.06, at an altitude of 13,000 meters (43,000 feet).

 
Black and white photograph of Eugene Bullard

October 12, 2010

Eugene J. Bullard

Story

Eugene Jacques Bullard is considered to be the first African-American military pilot to fly in combat, and the only African-American pilot in World War I.

Aristoteles (Lunar Crater)

October 05, 2010

Seeing Beneath the Surface of the Moon

Story

“Remote sensing” is a term used to describe many different types of observations carried out at a distance. Aerial photos, satellite images of the Earth and planets, and telescope views of our solar system are all forms of remote sensing used to understand geology, climate, hazards, and changes over time.