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| Exhibitions |  Featured: This month's banner shows the North American F-86A Sabre in the Korea and Vietnam Aviation exhibition at the Udvar-Hazy Center. This swept-wing aircraft joined the ranks of great fighter aircraft during combat operations high above the Yalu River in Korea. Other jets in the exhibition include the Sabre's arch-rival, the Soviet-made MiG-15, shown in the photo at left, which was designed in 1946 to answer Soviet premier Joseph Stalin's urgent call for a high-altitude day interceptor.
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| Feature Story from Air & Space Magazine |  One-and-Onlies: The Complete List. Read about the Museum's one-of-a-kind aircraft that make the National Air and Space Museum so special. |
| This Month in Aviation and Space History | |
 Fifty years ago on October 14, 1962 Maj. Richard S. Heyser, flying a Lockheed U-2E, obtained photographic evidence of Soviet S-4 missiles being erected in Cuba, precipitating the Cuban missile crisis. Days later, on October 27, U-2 pilot Maj. Rudolf Anderson, Jr. became the only U.S. casualty of the Cuban missile crisis when he was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.
The Museum in Washington, DC houses a Lockheed U-2C, seen above left, in the Looking at Earth gallery along with numerous other photo reconnaissance artifacts.
A lecture on the role aerial photography played in the Cuban missile crisis is taking place at the Udvar-Hazy Center on October 19. |
| What's New in Planetary Studies | |
 As reported previously, Dr. John Grant, a geologist in the Museum's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies, is on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) team. The MSL, a car-size rover nicknamed Curiosity, arrived safely on the Martian surface in the early morning hours of August 6 EDT. Here is an update from Dr. Grant on his MSL-related activities:
"I am involved in strategic planning for the rover, typically thinking about what we will be doing a few days out and further into the future that will help to achieve mission objectives. I've been going back and forth a lot between Washington, DC and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, and working on Mars time (a Mars day is ~40 mins longer than an Earth day), meaning there are some pretty odd hours being kept. The mission is going very well and we are starting to rove towards a position dubbed "Glenelg," where we should have a good view to evaluate an interesting set of geologic formations nearby where we landed. Along the way, we are continuing to check our instruments and rover tools that will eventually be used to interrogate the rocks we deem most likely to yield information on the past habitability of Mars." |
| Test your Knowledge |  What are the four forces of flight? Find the answer and learn more about flight in the How Things Fly online exhibit. It's a great site to look at with your kids. |
| New on the AirSpace Blog | |
Packing for Spaceflight, by Space History Division curator Valerie Neal
Let's Just Hope It Fits, by Heidi Eitel, exhibits designer
Tuskegee Red Lands at Air and Space, by Brett McNish, supervisory horticulturalist, Smithsonian Gardens
Remembering Neil Armstrong, by Space History Division senior curator Roger Launius
Neil, Flat Stanley, and Me, by Aeronautics Division senior curator Tom Crouch
The Langley Preservation Project: Thinking Outside the Box, by Jessica Bulger, a Collections Care and Preservation Fund contractor, and Eleesha Blackwell, an intern in the Collections Division
Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 Extravehicular Gloves and Visor, by Space History Division curator Cathleen Lewis |
| Missing Link |  The link to this time lapse video was inadvertently left out of last month's issue. The video documents the preparation and transport of Wiley Post's Lockheed Vega, Winnie Mae, from the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia to the Museum in Washington, DC. The airplane will be part of the Time and Navigation exhibition set to open in March 2013.
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Apollo 11 Astronauts. This photo shows Neil Armstrong, center, in 2009 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. It was his last public appearance at the National Air and Space Museum. With him are fellow Apollo 11 astronauts Buzz Aldrin, left, and Michael Collins, right. |
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 Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 Visor. The A7-L Lunar Extravehicular Visor Assembly was worn by Neil Armstrong during the Apollo 11 mission and consists of a polycarbonate shell. This helmet was worn over the pressure helmet and provided the protection needed during EVA periods. It is on temporary display, along with Armstrong's gloves, at the
Udvar-Hazy Center through October 3. |
 Hubble Reflector Cluster. In the creation of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) mockup for display in the Museum in Washington, DC in the mid 1990s, one of the contractors (Jackson and Tull) responsible for adding details to simulate operational components like those in the flight HST, used this cluster of commercial bike reflectors to cosmetically recreate one of two "navigation reflector" clusters. This red one is on the east side of the base ring of the Support Systems Module Aft Shroud and there is an orange cluster on the west side. Presumably these reflectors were available for rough positioning of the telescope during servicing missions. The Museum has not found documentation on how or if they were actually used in the servicing history of the HST. The Museum's full-size Hubble telescope on display is a Structural Dynamic Test Vehicle. |
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For more photos, search through the online collections imagery database. |
| Events and Activities |
To watch live and archived lecture webcasts, go here. |
Smithsonian's Stars Lecture Series
At the Museum in Washington, DC
Topic: We Make 'Em and Fly 'Em - Three Decades of Telescopes for Observing the Sun at the Smithsonian
Presenter: Peter Cheimets, senior project engineer, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
Saturday, October 6, 5:15 - 6:45 pm
Topic: Mercury: Oh Strange New World That Has Such Structures In It!
Presenter: Michelle Selvans, planetary geophysicist, the Museum's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies
Saturday, October 20, 5:15 - 6:45 pm
Both lectures are followed by stargazing at the observatory.
The Smithsonian's Stars Lecture Series is made possible by a grant from NASA.
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Stargazing at the Public Observatory
Saturday, October 6 and Saturday, October 20, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
At the Museum in Washington, DC |
GE Aviation Lecture
Topic: Fly Marines: Observations from the Cockpit
Presenter: Gen. J. R. "Jack" Dailey, USMC (Ret.)
Thursday, October 11, 8:00 pm
At the Museum in Washington, DC
The GE Aviation Lecture Series is made possible by the generous support of GE Aviation. |
Family Day
Topic: Hispanic Innovators in Aerospace
Saturday, October 13, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
At the Museum in Washington, DC
The Heritage Family Day series is made possible by the generous support of Northrop Grumman Corporation. |
Lecture
Topic: Eyeball to Eyeball: The Inside (Photographic) Story of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Presenter: Mr. Dino Brugioni
Friday, October 19, 7:30 pm
Note location: Udvar-Hazy Center |
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Halloween Family Day
Air & Scare
Saturday, October 27, 2:00 - 8:00 pm
At the Udvar-Hazy Center
Air & Scare is made possible by the generous support of Mars Chocolate North America, LLC. |
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Recurring Activities
Super Science Saturdays
At the Udvar-Hazy Center
Every second Saturday; this month: October 13; Topic: Balloons and Blimps
Demonstrations and hands-on activities related to aviation and space science
This series is made possible by the generous support of FBR.
Saturday Star Party
At Sky Meadows State Park near Paris, Virginia
Saturday, October 13, 6:00 - 8:30 pm
View the night sky through high-powered telescopes with astronomers to guide you.
"Flights of Fancy" Stories for Children
At the Museum in Washington, DC
Variable schedule
A flight- or space-related story and art activity recommended for ages 3-8
This event is made possible by the generous support of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.
Ask an Expert Lectures
Both locations
Wednesdays, Noon, at the Museum in Washington, DC
Second and fourth Thursdays, 12:30, at the Udvar-Hazy Center
Short talks about objects in the Museum and aviation- and space-related topics
Author Book Signings
Both locations
Variable schedule
Buy a book, have it autographed, and take home a great memento or gift.
Public Observatory
At the Museum in Washington, DC
Wednesdays through Saturdays from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, weather permitting; see special nighttime viewings under "Events and Activities" above.
Look through a 16-inch telescope to discover the wonders of the Universe.
Imax Movies
Both locations
Variable titles, schedules, and prices
Experience the thrill of watching movies on a giant screen with surround-sound.
Albert Einstein Planetarium
At the Museum in Washington, DC
Variable titles and schedules; some shows are free
Zoom through the cosmos enveloped in moving images and spine-tingling sound. |
| One Museum, Two Locations |
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 Museum in Washington, D.C.
6th & Independence, S.W.
Washington, DC
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 Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
14390 Air and Space Museum Pkwy.
Chantilly, Virginia
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Open every day from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. except December 25.
Admission is free. Udvar-Hazy Center parking: $15, free after 4:00 p.m.
For information call (202) 633-1000.
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