Director: Gen. J.R. “Jack” Dailey
Total Full-Time Employees: 230
Annual Budget (federal and trust) FY 2008: $26 million
Approximate Number of Artifacts/Specimens: 55,000
Visitors (2007): 7 million (National Mall building and Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.)

Background
The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum is one of the world’s most popular museums with more than 7 million visitors in 2007. Its mission is to commemorate, educate and inspire visitors by preserving and displaying aeronautical and space flight artifacts. The museum maintains the world’s largest collection of historic aircraft and spacecraft among more than 50,000 objects and serves the public through exhibitions, public programs, educational activities, publications and electronic outreach. It also is a vital center for historical research on aviation and spaceflight and the related science and technology and home to the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies, which performs original research and outreach activities in planetary sciences.

The museum has two public display facilities. The flagship building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., which opened in July 1976, houses many of the icons of flight, including the original 1903 Wright Flyer, Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis, Chuck Yeager’s Bell X-1, John Glenn’s Friendship 7 spacecraft, the Apollo 11 command module and a lunar rock sample that visitors can touch. The museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles Airport., which opened in December 2003, houses many more artifacts in an open, hangar-like setting, including a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a Concorde, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress “Enola Gay,” the “Dash 80” prototype for the 707, the sole-surviving Boeing 307 Stratoliner and space shuttle Enterprise.

Research and Collections
Aeronautics Division—The Aeronautics Division is responsible for research, collections, organization of exhibitions and public service relating to the history of flight in the atmosphere. Research efforts encompass the technological, military, political, economic, social and material culture aspects of human flight. Research is disseminated in scholarly and popular publications, exhibitions and a wide range of public programs. Aeronautics Division staff collect and study historic and technologically significant aircraft, as well as a myriad of related equipment and cultural memorabilia. These artifacts comprise both exhibition and study collections.

Space History Division—The Space History Division is a focal point for the space-related collecting, historical research and exhibit work of the museum. Curators and historians within the division write, lecture, collect artifacts and prepare exhibitions in the following fields: rocketry, computers and avionics, human spaceflight, satellites and commercial spacecraft, military space, space science, ground- and space-based planetary science and astronomy, and foreign space programs.

Center for Earth and Planetary Studies—Established in 1973, the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies utilizes a collection of more than 300,000 photographs and images of the Earth, moon and planets in research related to planetary and terrestrial geology—many obtained from Earth-orbiting satellites and manned and unmanned space missions. Staff research activities include planetary geology, geophysics and geologic mapping of planetary surfaces; geomorphology and surface dynamics in arid and semi-arid regions of the Earth; and comparative studies of volcanic and tectonic landforms on the Earth and other terrestrial planets. The Center for Earth and Planetary Studies is a NASA-supported program

Collections Division—The Collections Division of the National Air and Space Museum is located primarily at the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration and Storage Facility in Suitland, Md. The division consists of the Collections Division Administrative Section, the Preservation and Restoration Unit, the Conservation Unit and the Office of the Registrar. The Collections Division is responsible for the protection, preservation, conservation and restoration of the National Collection of Aeronautics and Space Artifacts in perpetuity; it is responsible for guaranteeing physical care of the collections.

Archives—The Archives at the National Air and Space Museum is responsible for document, film and photograph collections relating to the history and technology of aviation and aerospace. The document collections include more than 2 million aircraft engineering drawings from the 1890s to the 1970s, either on microfilm or in paper format, and numerous technical manuals, manuscript collections and scrapbooks, as well as other photo collections. Written inquiries from the public are welcome. Researchers may visit the Archives to conduct their own research by appointment.

Exhibitions and Galleries
“Milestones of Flight”—The entrance gallery showcases the Spirit of St. Louis, the X-15, John Glenn’s Mercury spacecraft, the Apollo 11 command module, the Viking Lander, Pioneer 10, SpaceShipOne and a touchable lunar sample.

“Early Flight”—This gallery resembles an indoor aeronautical exhibition from 1913 and covers the birth and early years of the air age. Planes on display include the Wright 1909 Military Flyer (world’s first military airplane), the Ecker Flying boat, a 1911 Curtiss Model D and an 1894 Lilienthal glider.

“The Wright Brothers and the Invention of the Aerial Age”—The 1903 Wright Flyer serves as the centerpiece of this exhibition, which tells the story of how Wilbur and Orville Wright invented the airplane and how their monumental achievement affected the world in the decade that followed. The exhibition includes many historic photographs and cultural artifacts, along with instruments and personal items associated with the Wrights.

“Golden Age of Flight”—This gallery presents the planes, personalities and aviation events that marked the years between the two world wars. Featured objects included a Wittman “Buster,” Beechcraft Staggerwing, Curtiss Robin “Ole Miss,” Hughes H-1 and Northrop Gamma “Polar Star.”

“How Things Fly”—This gallery explores the principles of flight through hands-on activities. This exhibition features a Cessna 150, a section of a Boeing 757 fuselage, a model of the International Space Station and more than 50 interactives, including a visitor-operated supersonic wind tunnel.

“Exploring the Planets”—This gallery takes visitors on a tour of the solar system and imparts some of the knowledge scientists have acquired by exploring the planets via space missions and observations from Earth. The largest single artifact in this gallery is a full-scale replica of a Voyager spacecraft.

“Explore the Universe”—Five major sections trace 400 years of evolution in the instruments humankind has used to view the heavens and probe its secrets. The exhibition features William Herschel’s favorite telescope, an observing cage from Mount Wilson used by Edwin Hubble and the backup mirror for the Hubble Space Telescope.

“World War II Aviation”—The air history of World War II is featured in this gallery. Artifacts include a Messerschmitt Bf 109, Supermarine Spitfire, Mitsubishi Zero, Macchi 202 and North American P-51 Mustang.

“Space Race”—This exhibition chronicles human space exploration from the end of World War II to the present. It centers on the Cold War contest between the United States and the former Soviet Union and examines the spectacular public milestones and ultrasecret missions undertaken by these two great powers. Artifacts include the Kosmos 1442 Merkur spacecraft, Apollo-Soyuz, Skylab Orbital Workshop, Corona spy satellite and the Hubble Space Telescope test vehicle.

“Apollo to the Moon”—This gallery tells the story of the U.S.-manned spaceflight programs from Project Mercury through Skylab. Artifacts include the Skylab 4 command module, Lunar Roving Vehicle and lunar surface experiments. Various types of lunar samples highlight the hall.

“Pioneers of Flight”—Aircraft in this gallery include the “Gossamer Condor,” the Douglas World Cruiser, Lindbergh’s Lockheed Sirius, Fokker T-2, Curtiss R3C-2 and the Extra 260. Also presented are Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed 5B Vega, a commemorative Lindbergh exhibit and an examination of the roles of African Americans in aviation.

“America by Air”—Through a comprehensive array of artifacts, photographs, artwork and interactive displays, the gallery shows how paying passengers got off the ground after the development of airmail; how air travel went from the realm of intrepid adventurers to an everyday necessity; and how current events will affect the way people fly for years to come. Aircraft in the gallery include the Curtiss JN-4 Jenny, the first aircraft to fly the mail; a Ford Tri-Motor; a Douglas DC-7, the first airliner to provide nonstop coast-to-coast service; and the forward fuselage section of a Boeing 747 jumbo jet.

Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
Unlike the Mall building, which features traditional exhibitions, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center houses artifacts in an enhanced open storage design filling two huge connecting structures, the Boeing Aviation Hangar and the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar. There are 156 aircraft on display, 150 space artifacts and more than 1500 smaller items. Major artifacts include the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a Concorde, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress “Enola Gay,” and the space shuttle Enterprise. The most recent addition is the Lockheed Super Constellation C-121C, better known as the “Connie.” Attractions include the Donald D. Engen Observation Tower and an Imax theater.

About the Museum
The National Air and Space Museum’s Mall building is located at Sixth Street and Independence Avenue S.W. The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is located in Chantilly, Va., off of Route 28 near Washington Dulles International Airport. Both facilities are open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Closed Dec. 25.) Admission is free, but there is a $12 fee for parking at the Udvar-Hazy Center before 4 p.m.

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SI-164B-2008