Air and Space Museum unveils 5 new galleries as renovation nears end
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The RTX Living in the Space Age gallery. Photo: Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, Mark Avino
The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum is opening five new and updated galleries Wednesday, just in time for the big 250th July 4 celebration.
Why it matters: The new spaces come as the museum nears the fall finish line of its nearly $1 billion renovation, which kicked off in 2018.
- The opening also celebrates 50 years of the museum's building on the National Mall.
State of play: The launch includes two new galleries — and three that have been refreshed:
- 🌀 U.S. National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe: This new gallery guides you through the ins and outs of modern astronomy and some of the big breakthroughs in better understanding the universe. Think: the Event Horizon Telescope hard drives used to make the first black hole image.
- 🚀 RTX Living in the Space Age Hall: This new area will showcase the evolution of space technology, with artifacts like the Skylab Orbital Workshop and a Hubble Space Telescope test vehicle.
- 🎨 Flight and the Arts Center: This redesigned gallery has two exhibits — "The Art of Air and Space: Interpretations of Flight" displays work from the museum's 7,000-piece collection of air and space-related art, and "The Ascent of Rauschenberg: Reinventing the Art of Flight" is filled with on-theme pieces by the artist.
- 🪖 Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air: This refreshed gallery outlines the role aviation played in World War II and includes period planes like a North American P-51D Mustang and the casing used for the "Little Boy" atomic bomb.
- ✈️ Textron How Things Fly: This updated gallery is all about how things, well, fly and is filled with interactive exhibits that let visitors pilot a drone and walk through a wind tunnel.
Catch up quick: Big highlights from the museum's multiyear refresh include launching the Mars Cafe and the Northrop Grumman Planetarium, as well as several new exhibits that opened last year.
What we're watching: The last two galleries are slated to open this fall.
If you go: It's free to visit, but guests can reserve timed-entry passes.
