The Space Race grew out of a conflict known as the Cold War. While not a war in the traditional sense, the two countries were in a state of military and political tension that lasted nearly 50 years ...

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) has captured dramatic landscapes of the Moon since it was first launched in 2009. A New Moon Rises showcased those breathtaking images from Apollo ...

In 1941, a new air base at Tuskegee, Alabama, became the center for the training program of Black air personnel. First with the 99th Fighter Squadron and later with the 332nd Fighter Group, African ...

After four days traveling to the Moon, the Lunar Module Eagle, carrying Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon.. Neil Armstrong exited the spacecraft and became the first human to walk on ...

One of the images that Heyser captured reveals the presence of medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) in San Cristóbal, Cuba. Heyser’s flight that day, October 14, 1962, revealed that the Soviet Union ...

Waco CG-4A glider on the ground, probably at Wright Field, Ohio, October 12, 1942. (NASM WF-101419) Training American Glider Pilots. Lacking enough time to think through the training requirements to ...

The Wright brothers—you may have heard of them. But who exactly were they and what did they do? The invention of the airplane by Wilbur and Orville Wright is one of the great stories in American ...

The launch of Sputnik, the first satellite in space, aboard an R-7 rocket. (Smithsonian Institution) The Space Race became a symbol of the broad ideological and political contest between two rival ...

Discover our exhibitions and participate in programs both in person or virtually. In the 21st century, it is commonplace to travel by plane—and many Americans are familiar with the flying ...

Explore the universe with a show at the planetarium, located at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. Tickets are available for purchase on site at the National Air and Space Museum.

Discover our exhibitions and participate in programs both in person or virtually. Facing a two-front war in Europe and the Pacific, the United States mobilized its vast human and industrial resources ...

Picture the Earth from above. In your mind's eye, what do you see? Today, we have access to air and space technology that lets us see various views of the Earth with ease. However, before the ...