The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and National Museum of African American History and Culture will collaborate with NASA astronaut Victor Glover to help document his historic first trip to the International Space Station (ISS) through educational programming and digital content. Glover is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station Nov. 14 and will become the first Black astronaut to live on the ISS as part of a long-duration crew. The collaboration with Glover and NASA will allow the two museums to tell the story of his first trip to the ISS, and it will explore themes of teamwork, artistic expression and resilience.

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum will host “Air & Scare at Home” in lieu of its annual in-person Halloween event. This reformatted virtual “Air & Scare” will feature online downloadable activities, live digital programming and a virtual costume and pumpkin decorating contest for sweet prizes. 

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and Grammy award-winning musician and producer Diplo have released Under Ancient Skies across all major digital streaming services, including Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum has launched new virtual initiatives for the 2020–2021 school year that will increase educators’ access to museum content, resources and artifacts. Virtual field trips and story times are now available to reserve for classrooms and in-home education. Learning Guides, a new season of the “STEM in 30” webcast series and curated content released monthly will also be available throughout the school year on the museum’s website.

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum will present this year’s “Mars Day!” program virtually. This annual tribute to the Red Planet will take place online Thursday, July 16 through Saturday, July 18.

The National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia, began construction to repair and resurface the exterior roof of its Boeing Aviation Hangar in April. This two-year project will be completed in sections and requires areas of the museum to be closed and some artifacts to be covered for their protection.

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum will present a virtual concert, “Space Songs: Through the Distance” April 30 at 8 pm EDT. Featuring performances from musical guests filmed in their own homes, it will spotlight the creativity and community that can be found in distance and isolation, in both music and spaceflight.

Honoring Astronaut Michael Collins’ legacy in aviation and space, the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum is renaming its trophy for the Apollo 11 command module pilot. The recognition is awarded annually for Lifetime and Current Achievements. The 2020 recipients are Charles Elachi for Lifetime Achievement and the Hubble Space Telescope Team for Current Achievement. The recipients will receive their awards March 26 at a ceremony at the museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.