The Smithsonian National Air and Space museum is hallowed ground for air and space enthusiasts such as myself. It took great effort to keep from drooling all over the place. The North American X-15 was the first aircraft to break Mach 6 and bridged the gap between aircraft and spaceflight. It must have been one hell of a ride to be on that rocket plane.
Yes, that’s SpaceShipOne and Bell X-1. The first private passenger-carrying craft to break the Kármán line and the first aircraft to break the sound barrier. Amazing. And to the left is the Spirit of Saint Louis, the first plane to complete a solo, non-stop flight between New York City and Paris.
A replica of Sputnik, the first man-made satellite in space, and Pioneer 10, the first spacecraft to go past Jupiter.
The Mercury 7 capsule that John Glenn rode to become the first American to orbit the earth. The Soviets beat the Americans but this is still a very important craft.
Soviet SS-20 and American Pershing II missiles. These were medium range ballistic missiles tipped with nuclear warheads. The Soviet one had multiple reentry units. Once they were pointed at each other, ready to annihilate everything. Now they live together in harmony at the Air and Space Museum.
Two Goddard rockets.
One of the original liquid-fueled rockets that Goddard made so many years ago. This rocket effectively started space exploration.
The Apollo 11 command module. Yes, THE Apollo 11 command module. Brady, Joe, and I were all drooling looking at this amazing craft. How three people managed to not go crazy being cooped up in that thing is beyond me.
Right here, in one room, is the very best of human achievement.
A V-1 “Buzz Bomb” rocket, a V-2 rocket, and a whole pile of other rockets and important spacecraft. Amazing!
An Apollo module linked up with a Soviet craft. Truly a milestone of technology and peace.
A mock-up of Hubble. The thing is larger than a school bus!
An Apollo command module that was used to go to Skylab.
The door hatch from Apollo 11.
A small part of the business end of a Saturn 5 rocket.
A cruise missile and a canceled space plane.
A mock-up of the Lunar Lander.
Some of the early reconnaissance craft sent to the moon.
A Ford Trimotor.
A Douglas DC-3. I would love to own and fly one of these.
An unmanned aerial vehicle. An X-45A, I believe.
Another drone.
That’s a Predator with another drone above it.
That human-powered plane crossed the English Channel.
A replica of the Mars Rovers.
Awkward display still being setup.
The Polar Star. It flew across Antarctica.
This plane held the record for most days aloft without landing.
A sleep plane with recessed rivets.