Hundreds of people lined up outside of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum on Monday morning (July 28), waiting for the doors to open and the curtains to drop on five newly renovated galleries devoted to aviation and space exploration history. The museum's flagship building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. was on track to have more than 6,000 visitors be among the first to see the returning exhibits, like John Glenn's Mercury capsule "Friendship 7," and all new displays, such as SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket parts, a Blue Origin crew cabin and an immersive 3D-printed Mars habitat. Adjacent to "Milestones" is the new "Futures in Space" exhibition, which aims to recapture the visitor experience from when the National Air and Space Museum first opened and the space artifacts on exhibit were still contemporary to the day.
Author: robert@collectspace.com (Robert Z. Pearlman) , Robert Z. Pearlman
Published at: 2025-07-28 21:00:00
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