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 1 - 10 of 86

September 23, 2024 Artifacts in Orbit Story | Air & Space Quarterly

A 2013 expedition funded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos recovered dozens of parts from the Saturn V rocket that launched Apollo 11 into space in 1969. 

Read more
August 16, 2024 Is the “Dark Side of the Moon” Actually Dark? Story

This dark side is also known as the farside (and the side facing Earth is called the nearside). The phrase "dark side of the Moon" is used to refer to something mysterious or unknown. For most of human history we did not know what the farside of the Moon looked like. It wasn’t until 1959 when the Soviet Union launched the Luna 3 spacecraft that we got our first look at the farside.

Read more
July 19, 2024 Dr. Edward C. Stone's Contributions to Aerospace Story

Ed Stone’s long and distinguished career in space science connects to many of the planetary exploration objects displayed in the galleries at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. That so many of the Museum’s objects have connections to his professional achievements illustrates Stone’s significant legacy in space science and exploration.

Read more
June 11, 2024 AirSpace Season 9, Episode 3: Let's Talk about Sex Story | AirSpace Podcast

Sci-fi is full of giant ships full of humanity living and dying and reaching out to new places far far away. Usually, these are called generations ships. And they rely on well, generations.

Read more
September 26, 2023 AirSpace Season 8, Episode 1: Dancing on the Ceiling Story | AirSpace Podcast

AirSpace is looking up! We're exploring how we hang really, really big, priceless artifacts from the ceiling in the museum.

Read more
September 20, 2023 This Object Represents a New Approach to Moon Exploration Story | Air & Space Quarterly

The Peregrine test model is the first commercial lander in the Museum's collection 

Read more
June 17, 2023 The Caretaker Story | Air & Space Quarterly

A conversation with aerospace engineer Dennis Jenkins who works with the space shuttles, relying on his expertise in orbiter construction to ensure their maintenance as museum artifacts. 

Read more
February 23, 2023 AirSpace Season 7, Ep. 6: Drops From Jupiter Story | AirSpace Podcast

The Juno spacecraft currently orbiting Jupiter almost didn’t have a camera, and boy would that have been a shame. On this episode of AirSpace, we unpack how JunoCam has contributed to science and completely changed the way we view this beautiful gas giant.

Read more
August 12, 2022 Seeing Earth Through Astronaut Eyes Story

Curator Jennier Levasseur explores how astronauts have looked down at Earth during missions ranging from Apollo to the International Space Station expeditions.

Read more
July 15, 2022 Probing Hostile Planets Story

Spacecraft face a dramatic range of conditions, from airless worlds bombarded by tiny meteorites to environmental extremes, when exploring our Universe. 

Read more