Event name: National Air and Space Museum Trip
Event time and place: February 24, 2024 at the National Air and Space Museum
The F-1 Engine from the "Destination Moon" Exhibit.
One World Connected: The gallery, “One World Connected,” focuses on how humanity escaping the atmosphere has allowed us to become more connected through the use of satellites and other tools. One invention that is portrayed is the radio connected via satellite. This allows us to listen to radio stations while in the car and get updated on the news, both locally and internationally. Another invention portrayed is the CubeSat, a small satellite built from several small modules, letting them be inexpensive and easy to launch. This satellite was part of a program meant to measure how the changes in the Earth’s upper atmosphere affected communications. A PropCube was donated to the museum that sits along with a description of the invention’s use. Finally, the last invention I will talk about is the GLU-925 Multi-Mode Receiver, a boxy structure that helps pilots and air traffic controllers manage flights so that planes can be as safe as possible. Like the CubeSat, a model sits in the museum with a description displayed next to it. This gallery feels aimed towards middle schoolers, as the information is specific and a bit wordy, but not super complex. There are also a lot of images to help explain the information. This gallery also contains a couple hands-on activities. The main one I interacted with depicted the effectiveness of different shipping styles. It allowed us to spin the wheel, and three different lights could glow depending on the effectiveness of the shipping style for the scenario. I enjoyed finding the most effective way to transport in every way and found this interactive activity to be quite interesting and fun. Overall, I think this gallery was great at depicting the innovations and effectiveness of our technologies to connect humans around the world.
Exploring the Planets: This gallery, “Exploring the Planets,” concentrates on the science and history of the bodies in our solar system, from the outer planets like Neptune, Uranus, or Jupiter, to the inner planets like Mercury, Venus, or Mars, as well as the moons of the solar system. One discovery that is portrayed in this gallery is the discovery of the planet Neptune and Uranus. This discovery is displayed with a poster full of information about the discoverers and the general information about these planets. An invention displayed in this gallery is the Marie Curie Rover, which is the flight spare for the Sojourner, which was aboard the Pathfinder spacecraft. The Marie Curie Rover is displayed in the museum, with a description of it and the Sojourner attached. Finally, the last invention I will talk about for this gallery is the Mars Exploration Rover. This rover was used to troubleshoot problems that the rover on Mars encountered. This hall is aimed towards any person above the age of five; there are so many cool models on display, but there is a lot of information for older people to learn from. This exhibit contains several interactive displays: one details the surface of rocky planets with touchable components, and another details the different planets and how we explore them with flaps and a spinnable wheel. I find these interactive displays to be less effective at conveying their information in an engaging way compared to the first gallery. These displays contain too much reading to get as much out of them as one can from the first gallery. Altogether, I think this gallery has incredible models and descriptions, but suffers in the interactive side.
Destination Moon: This gallery, “Destination Moon,” features iconic inventions, objects, and tools as well as the motivations used to get to the Moon. One such object is the Apollo 11 Command Module, which includes a model of it, a description of its use and history, and a picture of its recovery from the ocean. Another object is the F-1 Engine, the most powerful liquid-propellant rocket engine ever built. A model of the engine, to scale, is on display in this gallery. Finally, the last object is the Gemini VII, which was used to perform medical experiments in space, testing food, waste, and sleep in space. Two of the hatches are removed to display the cabin and to show how much space the astronauts had. This hall is aimed towards elementary school students and older. Like the previous gallery, there are some incredible and interesting models on display. This exhibit contains several interactives: we can feel the glove that Armstrong wore while exploring the surface of the Moon, and the glove that Armstrong wore while in the spacecraft. We can also feel a smaller model of the F-1 Engine and see how that model compares to a human, sized down the same amount. I find these interactives to be quite effective at portraying the size of these significant objects. We can gain much just from glancing at the pictures and interacting with them, rather than relying mainly on reading the descriptions of the interactives. In conclusion, I find this gallery to be quite great, as it captures the wonder and ingenuity of the race to the Moon.
It can be hard to portray the new discoveries being made all the time in museums. However, this museum portrays them quite well. As I’ve talked about, these galleries have a lot of models, quick and interesting descriptions, and great interactives. The exhibit designers portrayed various astronomical concepts by creating interactives for people to touch and play around with, while also learning about these concepts. They also used a lot of pictures and models so that people could quickly make their own observations of the concept and then read to gain general information. The exhibit designers tried to make updated information available to visitors, as they updated the information and edited the exhibits a couple years ago, however, I do not remember where these updates were.
In conclusion, my experience on this excursion was quite great. I had a fun time seeing the different exhibits and how work in my major (aerospace engineering) has developed over the years, and how it can further develop. I hope to visit the National Air and Space Museum once it gets fully renovated, as these exhibits have been quite enjoyable.