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2008 Folklife Festival

    Folklife Festival 2008 Participants NASA, Bhutan, Texas.

    This summer (June 25-29 and July 2-6) NASA is honored to be one of three featured programs in the 42nd Annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in Washington DC. "NASA: Fifty Years and Beyond" will showcase the role that the men and women of NASA have played in broadening the horizons of American science and culture, as well as the role that they will continue to play in helping to shape the future. The festival will also highlight the Himalayan nation of Bhutan and the music, food, and wine of Texas. This site will be updated daily with images from the festival so please check back.

    › NASA is Telling Its Story -- One Person at a Time

    Recent Images from NASA at the Folklife Festival

    In the next 50 years, NASA plans to send astronauts to the Moon and Mars. These astronauts must follow a strenuous exercise program in-flight to prevent the health effects of space flight. These effects include decrease in bone and muscle mass, strength, sensory-motor function, and the ability to perform aerobic exercise. Modern research-scale drop towers provide scientists with brief periods of low-gravity free-fall conditions in which a wide variety of scientific experiments can be conducted. This NASA exhibiter is demonstrating a portable microgravity drop tower that can be used to assist in science education in the classroom. These visitors are learning about the Docking Mechanism that allows the Space Shuttle to dock with the International Space Station. When the solar arrays of the International Space Station are in the sun, nickel hydrogen batteries such as the one being demonstrated collect solar energy that is later used to power the Station when it is no longer within the Sun's line-of-sight. Ranger is a spaceflight qualified dexterous robotic servicing system that was primarily designed per the requirements for robotic servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope. The fifth and final Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope is scheduled for October 2008.

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    Related Events

    Space Symphony Orchestra
    (Wednesday, June 25, 6 p.m.)
    National Museum of the American Indian
    The Space Symphony Orchestra under Emil de Cou will perform a free concert of space-related music while projections of NASA images enliven the Potomac atrium of the National Museum of the American Indian.

    Films at Baird Auditorium, National Museum of Natural History
    The National Museum of Natural History will present the following feature-length films, from 5 to 7:30 p.m.
    • In the Shadow of the Moon (Friday, June 27)
    • Apollo 13 (Saturday, June 28)
    • 2001: A Space Odyssey (Sunday, June 29)

    Exhibitions at the National Air and Space Museum
    The National Air and Space Museum has several exhibitions on display that relate to the NASA program.
    • "Space: A Journey to Our Future" highlights current projects in space exploration and some possibilities for future human space travel.
    • "NASA Art: Fifty Years of Exploration" presents works of art that capture the wonder of NASA's endeavors.
    • "How Things Fly" teaches the principles of flight.

    Visit www.nasm.si.edu/exhibitions for more information about these and other exhibitions on aeronautics and space exploration.