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 176

AirSpace, a podcast, logo

February 27, 2025

Crater Dating

Story | AirSpace Podcast

The oldest Earth rocks we have are 4.3 billion years old, and samples we've brought back from the Moon are even older. But what what does that have to do with craters on Mars? 

A black-and-white image shows three white men in their 30s, waving from the open door of a military helicopter. The men are wearing white shoes, pants, and shirts with a NASA logo.

September 23, 2024

Who Was Bill Anders?

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

Remembering astronaut Bill Anders.

AirSpace, a podcast, logo

August 08, 2024

AirSpace Season 9, Episode 7: Lasso the Moon

Story | AirSpace Podcast

Over six missions, the Apollo astronauts collected and brought back 842 pounds of Lunar samples. Who decides what rocks go where? And how did the National Cathedral get a rock to put in a stained glass window??

AirSpace, a podcast, logo

July 25, 2024

AirSpace Season 9 Bonus! My Mom the Rocket Scientist

Story | AirSpace Podcast

Our conversation with Jack Black and his brother Neil Siegal about their Mother, Judith Love Cohen was too good just to give you just the taste from the end of our Star Search episode. 

AirSpace, a podcast, logo

July 25, 2024

AirSpace Season 9, Episode 6: Star Search

Story | AirSpace Podcast

There are a lot of air and space celebrities; pilots, astronauts, engineers, etc, etc. But there's another category of celebrities that are famous for other things but also have surprising ties to air or space.

Astronaut William Anders, wearing a white Apollo spacesuit,  adjusts his snoopy cap during preparations for the Apollo 8 mission.

June 11, 2024

Through the Eyes of Bill Anders

Story

On June 7, 2024, Gen. William A. Anders died at age 90. Bill Anders dedicated his life to aerospace, first as a pilot and then as an astronaut, and his life was filled with inspirational moments for us to reflect upon as we mourn his passing. 

The distinctive, bug-shaped Apollo lunar lander floats above the cratered lunar surface, which fills most of the image. The lander is silver with instruments afixed to the outside.

December 20, 2023

Snoopy In Space

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

Charles M. Schulz and Walt Disney, the creators of some of the most endearing cartoon characters ever drawn, both found inspiration in the worlds of aviation and space.

Frank Broman suiting-up in spacesuit in preparation for a mission.

November 13, 2023

Remembering Col. Frank Borman (1928-2023)

Story

Frank Borman was one of the great explorers of the 20th century. As commander of Apollo 8, he was one of the first three humans to leave low Earth orbit, travel into deep space, and orbit the Moon. Yet exploring space was not his dream. An Air Force officer, patriot, and ardent Cold Warrior, he wanted to beat the Soviet Union in the Moon race and played a central role in making that happen. 

A gold bracelet has four space-theme charms: an Atlas rocket, a Gemini spacecraft, a Mercury spacecraft, and a Redstone rocket. The bracelet has two other charms: An octagonal charm reads “1st Grade” / “62”. A heart-shape charm is engraved with “1967”.

June 05, 2023

Hidden Workers

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

The touching story behind a 1960s charm bracelet.

An engineer in a hazmat-type suit and mask inspects the James Webb Space telescope's primary mirror segments, large octagonal mirrors that are the size of the engineer.

June 05, 2023

Up to Speed

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

The latest news in aviation and space.