The National Air and Space Museum holds in trust some 50,000 artifacts. Historic aircraft and space artifacts, such as the Wright 1903 Flyer and the Apollo 11 Command Module "Columbia", highlight the national collection. Thousands of additional artifacts--including engines, rockets, uniforms, spacesuits, balloons, artwork, documents, manuscripts and photographs--document the richness of the history of flight, at home and around the world. A wide variety of these artifacts are on display at the National Mall building and the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.
	The Object Collection The National Air and Space Museum is best known for its collection of rare and historically significant aircraft and spacecraft. The object collection also includes a wide variety of objects large and small, including engines, medals, trophies, instruments and equipment, models, artwork, spacesuits, uniforms and more. Altogether, the collection includes more than 30,000 aviation and 9,000 space objects. Only a small portion of these objects are on display to the public, while the remaining are in storage or on loan. Information on many objects in the collection is available online via the collections database.
	Archival Collections The Museum's archival collections include photographs, manuscripts, technical drawings, documents, film and oral histories spanning the history of flight from ancient times to the present day. Reference services are available. See the Archives Division for more information.
	Regional Planetary Image Faciliy In addition to conducting groundbreaking planetary research, the Museum's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies also houses a NASA Regional Planetary Image Facility. Images and data from Earth and planetary missions are available to visiting researchers.
	Loan Program The Museum's collection reaches an even wider audience through an active loan program that makes the national collection accessible to museums in the United States and around the world.
	Donating to the Collection The Museum accepts donations of objects, photographs, documents and more. If you are interested in donating to the Museum's collection, please use our donation inquiry form.