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99-625: The Prandtl-D1 and the Prandtl-D3 models are preserved in the National Air and Space Museum and the California Science Center , respectively. The Prandtl-D design intended to minimise drag and thus maximise aerodynamic efficiency, while remaining stable and controllable. It was inspired by the flight of birds, which turn and bank without the vertical tails that are required for such maneuvers on traditional aircraft. It

198-454: A Sun Gun Telescope and hydrogen-alpha (red light, to see the chromosphere ) and calcium-K (purple light) telescopes. The observatory opens to public from Wednesdays through Sundays from noon to 3 P.M. and is open about once a month at night time. In 2014, the museum began a television show for middle school students, called STEM in 30 . The show teaches students science, technology, engineering, math, art and history through artifacts at

297-533: A towed launch system . The first two vehicles of the program showed twist of the airfoil in providing a bell-shaped lift distribution instead of the elliptical distribution. This feature gave an efficiency boost and reduced strain on the wings. The Prandtl-D led to the Preliminary Research Aerodynamic Design to Land on Mars (Prandtl-M) program designed for Mars Exploration. It has been tested in upper atmosphere of Earth and

396-539: A 12.5-foot wingspan and were constructed of a machined foam core wrapped in a skin of carbon fiber. The Prandtl-D No.3 has a wingspan of 25 ft, weight of 28 lbs, top airspeed of 18 kt, and a maximum altitude of 220 ft. The aircraft also has the Arduino flight control system used in the second Prandtl-D subscale model and is constructed of carbon fiber, fiberglass and foam. A key difference in the Prandtl-D full scale model

495-584: A botanical garden, and a museum that was designed to have a national and permanent status. The former occupied space where the present Botanic Garden sits. The museum contained specimens of zoology, botany, archeology, fossils, etc., some of which were passed on to the Smithsonian Institution after its formation. The institute's charter expired in 1838, but its spirit lived on in the National Institution , founded in 1840. With

594-643: A congressional investigation of the matter, and on January 24, 1995, 81 members of Congress called for Harwit's resignation. Harwit was forced to resign on May 2. Although the exhibit was "radically reduced" and criticized by the New York Times as "the most diminished display in Smithsonian history," the Air and Space Museum placed the forward fuselage of the Enola Gay and other items on display as part of

693-481: A glass-enclosed pavilion named the Wright Place was constructed and opened at the east end of the museum. It contained a restaurant known as Flight Lane, but the restaurant closed in 2001 and reopened as a food court on May 24, 2002, with McDonald's (later added with a McCafé ), Boston Market , and Donato's Pizza serving as the tenants. The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center opened on December 15, 2003, funded by

792-585: A multi-year, $ 360M renovation that started in 2018, during which some of its spaces and galleries are closed. As of August 2024, 13 of the museum's 23 galleries are open to the public, with 10 of them still closed for renovation. The remaining 10 galleries of the museum are expected to reopen some time in 2026. The Air and Space Museum was originally called the National Air Museum when formed on August 12, 1946, by an act of Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman . Some pieces in

891-553: A non-political historical exhibition. Within a year, it had drawn more than a million visitors, making it the most popular special exhibition in the history of the NASM, and when the exhibition closed in May 1998, it had drawn nearly four million visitors. On October 8, 2011, the museum was temporarily closed after demonstrators associated with the Occupy D.C. demonstration attempted to enter

990-591: A paid, one-month internship. Pilar O'Leary launched the program when she served as executive director of the Smithsonian Latino Center. According to the Latino Center, O'Leary told the press in 2007: "Our goal is to help our Young Ambassadors become the next generation of leaders in the arts and culture fields. This program encourages students to be proud of their roots and learn more about their cultural heritage to inspire them to educate

1089-560: A private donation. The museum received COSTAR , the corrective optics instrument installed in the Hubble Space Telescope during its first servicing mission ( STS-61 ), when it was removed and returned to Earth after Space Shuttle mission STS-125 . The museum also holds the backup mirror for the Hubble which, unlike the one that was launched, was ground to the correct shape. There were once plans for it to be installed to

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1188-416: A revision was created and a second draft proposed. This second revision was greeted with a large amount of Congressional involvement that resulted in line-by-line reviews of the script, which led to the less radical display that was seen in 1995. This was not met without resistance from the scholarly community, though. The Organization of American Historians felt as if Congress's attempts to police and penalize

1287-671: A successful review of the program. The Smithsonian specifically requested the aircraft because of its innovative proverse-yaw design. Four examples and two derivative designs were built; all were unpowered gliders. National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum ( NASM ) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C. , in the United States, dedicated to human flight and space exploration . Established in 1946 as

1386-554: A trust instrumentality and is not formally a part of any of the three branches of the federal government . The institution is named after its founding donor, British scientist James Smithson . It was originally organized as the United States National Museum , but that name ceased to exist administratively in 1967. The Smithsonian Institution has historical holdings of over 157 million items, 21 museums, 21 libraries, 14 education and research centers,

1485-464: A year and includes as ex officio members the chief justice of the United States and the vice president of the United States . The nominal head of the institution is the chancellor , an office which has traditionally been held by the chief justice. In September 2007, the board created the position of chair of the Board of Regents, a position currently held by Risa Lavizzo-Mourey . Other members of

1584-518: A zoo, and historical and architectural landmarks, mostly located in Washington, D.C. Additional facilities are located in Maryland , New York , and Virginia . More than 200 institutions and museums in 47 states , Puerto Rico , and Panama are Smithsonian Affiliates . Institution publications include Smithsonian and Air & Space magazines. Almost all of the institution's 30 million annual visitors are admitted without charge,

1683-544: Is an addition of a University of Minnesota developed Data Collection System (DAC). In March 2016, Bowers published a technical paper entitled, “On Wings of the Minimum Induced Drag: Spanload Implications for Aircraft and Birds,” NASA/TP – 2016-219072. Detailing the aerodynamic properties and mathematics associated with the project, Bowers discusses in depth the science behind altering the span load distribution on aircraft wings and

1782-741: Is designed to take topographic photos of the Martian surface. It also has provided a valuable platform for the Weather Hazard Alert and Awareness Technology Radiation Radiosonde Glider (WHAATRR) that will be used for atmospheric weather testing on Earth. In 2019, two of the aircraft, D1 and D3, were transferred to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and California Science Center , Los Angeles , respectively, for their display following

1881-516: Is funding the renovation of the "How Things Fly" children's exhibit, new museum educational programming, and the creation of an accredited course on flight and space technology for elementary and secondary school teachers. In June 2015, the Smithsonian made public a report which documented the need for extensive renovations to the Air and Space Museum. Many of the building's mechanical and environmental systems were redesigned during its construction from 1972 to 1976, which left them inadequate to handle

1980-409: Is interested, might be interested or ought to be interested". Another Secretary of the Smithsonian, Walter Boyne, founded Air & Space . The organization publishes under the imprints Smithsonian Institution Press, Smithsonian Books, and Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press. The Smithsonian makes a number of awards to acknowledge and support meritorious work. The Smithsonian Institution

2079-677: The Air Force Association and The Retired Officers Association , argued strongly that the exhibit's inclusion of Japanese accounts and photographs of victims politicized the exhibit and insulted U.S. airmen. Editorials called the National Air and Space Museum "an unpatriotic institution" due to the political nature of initial proposed script. Due to harsh backlash from the Air Force Association, The Retired Officers Association, and numerous members of Congress,

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2178-581: The Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia , the Friendship 7 capsule which was flown by John Glenn , Charles Lindbergh 's Spirit of St. Louis , the model of the starship Enterprise used in the science fiction television show Star Trek: The Original Series , and the Wright brothers ' Wright Flyer airplane near the entrance. The museum operates a 760,000-square-foot (71,000 m ) annex,

2277-637: The International Cometary Explorer , which is currently in a solar orbit that occasionally brings it back to Earth, should NASA attempt to recover it. Because of the museum's close proximity to the United States Capitol , the Smithsonian wanted a building that would be architecturally impressive but would not stand out too boldly against the Capitol building. St. Louis –based architect Gyo Obata of HOK designed

2376-544: The Marquis de Lafayette . Operating expenses were covered from the $ 5 yearly dues collected from each member. The institute proposed a number of undertakings. These included the study of plant life and the creation of a botanical garden on the Capitol Mall , an examination of the country's mineral production, improvement in the management and care of livestock, and the writing of a topographical and statistical history of

2475-627: The National Air Museum , its main building opened on the National Mall near L'Enfant Plaza in 1976. In 2023, the museum welcomed 3.1 million visitors, making it the fourth-most visited museum in the United States and eleventh-most in the world. The museum is a center for research into the history and science of aviation and spaceflight , as well as planetary science and terrestrial geology and geophysics . Almost all of its spacecraft and aircraft on display are original primary or backup craft (rather than facsimiles). Its collection includes

2574-672: The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) on July 9, 2015, for review and approval. If the NCPC authorizes the changes, the museum could begin work in 2018 and finish in 2024. In March 2016, Smithsonian officials said the project's cost had risen to $ 600 million. In late June 2016, Smithsonian officials projected the museum's renovation to cost $ 1 billion. This included $ 676 million for construction, $ 50 million to build new storage space, and $ 250 million for new exhibits. The Smithsonian said it would raise

2673-777: The National Museum of African Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery opened in a new, joint, underground museum between the Freer Gallery and the Smithsonian Castle. Reuse of another old building came in 1993 with the opening of the National Postal Museum in the 1904 former City Post Office building, a few city blocks from the Mall. In 2004, the Smithsonian opened the National Museum of

2772-602: The National Museum of African Art , as well as the National Gallery of Art , were formally returned to Nigerian cultural officials in a ceremony held in Washington D.C. The Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed , and Prince Aghatise Erediauwa, representing the Oba of Benin Kingdom, spoke at the ceremony. Mohammed said the "decision to return the timeless artworks is worth emulating." In February 2020,

2871-498: The Renwick Gallery . A smaller amount of funds would go to educational initiatives and digitization of collections. As of September 2017, the Smithsonian claimed to have raised $ 1.79 billion, with three months left in the formal campaign calendar. Separately from the major capital campaign, the Smithsonian has begun fundraising through Kickstarter . An example is a campaign to fund the preservation and maintenance of

2970-541: The Smithsonian American Women's History Museum . In 2011, the Smithsonian undertook its first-ever capital fundraising campaign. The $ 1.5 billion effort raised $ 1 billion at the three-year mark. Smithsonian officials made the campaign public in October 2014 in an effort to raise the remaining $ 500 million. More than 60,000 individuals and organizations donated money to the campaign by

3069-632: The South Pacific Ocean . These specimens and artifacts became part of the Smithsonian collections, as did those collected by several military and civilian surveys of the American West , including the Mexican Boundary Survey and Pacific Railroad Surveys , which assembled many Native American artifacts and natural history specimens. In 1846, the regents developed a plan for weather observation; in 1847, money

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3168-712: The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center , at Dulles International Airport . It includes the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar, which houses the museum's restoration and archival activities. Other preservation and restoration efforts take place at the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility in Suitland, Maryland . The museum's main building on the National Mall is undergoing

3267-458: The deaccession and restitution of items collected under circumstances considered unethical by contemporary standards and thus places moral over legal arguments. A month before, the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art had announced the planned return of most of its 39 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria , as well as of other cultural items to Turkey . On October 11, 2022, Benin Bronzes from

3366-542: The privilege of the floor at the United States Senate . On September 18, 2013, Secretary G. Wayne Clough announced he would retire in October 2014. The Smithsonian Board of Regents said it asked regent John McCarter, Jr., to lead a search committee. On March 10, 2014, the Smithsonian Board selected David Skorton , a physician and president of Cornell University , as the thirteenth secretary of

3465-940: The ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland for her role as Dorothy Gale in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz . Nineteen museums and galleries, as well as the National Zoological Park , comprise the Smithsonian museums. Eleven are on the National Mall , the park that runs between the Lincoln Memorial and the United States Capitol . Other museums are located elsewhere in Washington, D.C., with two more in New York City and one in Chantilly, Virginia . The Smithsonian has close ties with 168 other museums in 39 states, Panama , and Puerto Rico . These museums are known as Smithsonian Affiliated museums. Collections of artifacts are given to these museums in

3564-552: The 1960s. The space race in the 1950s and 1960s led to the renaming of the museum to the National Air and Space Museum, and finally congressional passage of appropriations for the construction of the new exhibition hall, which opened July 1, 1976, at the height of the United States Bicentennial festivities under the leadership of Director Michael Collins , who had flown to the Moon on Apollo 11 . In 1988,

3663-534: The Aircraft Building (also known as the "Tin Shed"), a large temporary metal shed in the Smithsonian Castle's south yard. Larger missiles and rockets were displayed outdoors in what was known as Rocket Row. The shed housed a large Martin bomber, a LePere fighter-bomber , and an Aeromarine 39B floatplane . Still, much of the collection remained in storage due to a lack of display space. The combination of

3762-611: The American Indian in a new building near the United States Capitol . Twelve years later almost to the day, in 2016, the latest museum opened: the National Museum of African American History and Culture , in a new building near the Washington Monument . Two more museums have been established and are being planned for eventual construction on the mall: the National Museum of the American Latino and

3861-567: The Board of Regents are three members of the U.S. House of Representatives appointed by the speaker of the House ; three members of the Senate, appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate ; and nine citizen members, nominated by the board and approved by the Congress in a joint resolution signed by the president of the United States. Regents who are senators or representatives serve for

3960-602: The GDP at the time it may be more comparable to $ 220 million in the year 2007. Once the money was in hand, eight years of congressional haggling ensued over how to interpret Smithson's rather vague mandate "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge." The money was invested by the US Treasury in bonds issued by the state of Arkansas, which soon defaulted. After heated debate, Massachusetts representative (and former president) John Quincy Adams persuaded Congress to restore

4059-485: The Hubble itself, but plans to return the satellite to Earth were scrapped after the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003; the mission was re-considered as too risky. In 2018, the museum received Schmitt Space Communicator, the device with the on-flight internet connection launched by Solstar on a New Shepard rocket to send the first tweet from space. The Smithsonian has also been promised

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4158-532: The Japanese city of Hiroshima . When the first draft of the script for the exhibit was leaked by Air Force Magazine , the responses were very critical. Two sentences described as infamous that sparked controversy were, "For most Americans, this war was fundamentally different than the one waged against Germany and Italy – it was a war of vengeance. For most Japanese, it was a war to defend their unique culture against western imperialism." Veterans' groups, led by

4257-548: The National Air and Space Museum collection date back to the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia after which the Chinese Imperial Commission donated a group of kites to the Smithsonian after Smithsonian Secretary Spencer Fullerton Baird convinced exhibiters that shipping them home would be too costly. The Stringfellow steam engine intended for aircraft was added to the collection in 1989,

4356-510: The National Museum of African-American Heritage and Culture. The opening of the center was prompted, in part, by the publishing of a report called "Willful Neglect: The Smithsonian and U.S. Latinos". According to documents obtained by The Washington Post , when former Latino Center executive director Pilar O'Leary first took the job, the center faced employees who had "serious performance issues". No performance plans existed for

4455-544: The Postdoctoral Earth and Planetary Sciences Fellowship. The Lindbergh Chair is a one-year senior fellowship to assist a scholar in the research and composition of a book about aerospace history. Announced in 1977 at the 50th anniversary of Lindbergh's famous solo flight, 1978 was the first year that the Lindbergh Chair was occupied—British aviation historian Charles Harvard Gibbs-Smith was selected as

4554-473: The Smithsonian Institution led to a "transparent attempt at historical cleansing." Also disputed was the predicted number of U.S. casualties that would have resulted from an invasion of Japan , had that been necessary, after the museum director, Martin O. Harwit , unilaterally reduced the figure by 75% on January 9, 1995, at the height of the dispute. On January 18 the American Legion called for

4653-489: The Smithsonian Libraries and Smithsonian Archives merged into one research center in 2020. The Smithsonian Institution includes three cultural centers among its units: In 1997, the Smithsonian Latino Center was created as a way to recognize Latinos across the Smithsonian Institution. The primary purpose of the center is to place Latino contributions to the arts, history, science, and national culture across

4752-646: The Smithsonian and funds to build the museum to hold it (which was named the Freer Gallery ), it was among the Smithsonian's first major donations from a private individual. The gallery opened in 1923. More than 40 years would pass before the next museum, the Museum of History and Technology (renamed the National Museum of American History in 1980), opened in 1964. It was designed by the world-renowned firm of McKim, Mead & White . The Anacostia Community Museum , an "experimental store-front" museum created at

4851-624: The Smithsonian began seeking approval for a $ 365 million renovation to the National Air and Space Museum. The agency hired the firm of Quinn Evans Architects to design the renovations and improvements. Interior changes include improving handicapped accessibility, main entrance visibility, and perimeter security. The entire façade will be replaced (using Tennessee marble again). The glass curtain walls will be replaced with triple glazed , thermally broken panels set in an aluminum frame . The curtain walls will be reinforced with steel to help improve their resistance to explosive blasts. Additional changes

4950-501: The Smithsonian made 2.8 million digital items available to the public under a Creative Commons Zero Public Domain Dedication, with a commitment to release further items in the future. The Smithsonian has eight research centers, located in Washington, D.C.; Front Royal, Virginia ; Edgewater, Maryland ; Suitland, Maryland ; Fort Pierce, Florida ; Cambridge, Massachusetts ; and Panama . Formerly two separate entities,

5049-503: The Smithsonian would like to make, but which are not contained in the $ 365 million price tag, include the installation of 1,300 solar panels on the roof and the Independence Avenue side of the museum, the construction of vestibules over the main entrances, and reconstruction of the terraces (which leak water into the parking garage and offices beneath the structure). The Smithsonian said it would submit its designs to

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5148-683: The Smithsonian's Department of Living Animals. The park was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted . The National Museum of Natural History opened in June 1911 to similarly accommodate the Smithsonian's United States National Museum, which had previously been housed in the Castle and then the Arts and Industries Building. This structure was designed by the D.C. architectural firm of Hornblower & Marshall . When Detroit philanthropist Charles Lang Freer donated his private collection to

5247-411: The Smithsonian's museums and research centers. The center is a division of the Smithsonian Institution. As of May 2016, the center is run by an executive director, Eduardo Díaz. At the time of its creation, the Smithsonian Institution had other entities dedicated to other minority groups: National Museum of the American Indian, Freer-Sackler Gallery for Asian Arts and Culture, African Art Museum, and

5346-416: The Smithsonian, slightly increased from previous years. Institution exhibits are free of charge, though in 2010 the Deficit Commission recommended admission fees. As approved by Congress on August 10, 1846, the legislation that created the Smithsonian Institution called for the creation of a Board of Regents to govern and administer the organization. This seventeen-member board meets at least four times

5445-532: The Smithsonian. Though the Smithsonian's first secretary, Joseph Henry , wanted the institution to be a center for scientific research, it also became the depository for various Washington and U.S. government collections. The United States Exploring Expedition by the U.S. Navy circumnavigated the globe between 1838 and 1842. The voyage amassed thousands of animal specimens, an herbarium of 50,000 plant specimens, and diverse shells and minerals, tropical birds, jars of seawater, and ethnographic artifacts from

5544-414: The United States. Reports were to be published periodically to share this knowledge with the greater public, but due to a lack of funds, this initially did not occur. The institute first met in Blodget's Hotel, later in the Treasury Department and City Hall, before being assigned a permanent home in 1824 in the Capitol building. Beginning in 1825, weekly sittings were arranged during sessions of Congress for

5643-468: The air. Bulldozers from Fort Belvoir and prefabricated buildings from the United States Navy kept the initial costs low. The museum's prominent site on the National Mall once housed the city's armory, which became Armory Square Hospital during the Civil War; it nursed the worst wounded cases who were transported to Washington after battles. The rest of the site was occupied by a cluster of temporary war buildings that existed from World War I until

5742-412: The aircraft is based on the flight of a bird. The Prandtl-D No. 3 first flew Oct. 28, 2015, with double the wingspan of the earlier versions, however, through development, the team managed to reduce the final glider's drag by 11%. Initially, each aircraft was radio operated with a hobby-grade controller and launched with a bungee cord system. Later flight tests switched from a bungee launch method to

5841-489: The building. The museum's glass curtain walls (among those elements of the 1976 structure whose design was altered for cost reasons) are too permeable to ultraviolet radiation. Several exhibits (such as the spacesuit worn by John Young during the Gemini 10 mission, and the coating on the Spirit of St. Louis aircraft) have been damaged by this radiation. Additionally, the Smithsonian's report noted that cutbacks in building design prior to and during construction left

5940-489: The construction of the Arts and Industries Building in 1881. Congress had promised to build a new structure for the museum if the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition generated enough income. It did, and the building was designed by architects Adolf Cluss and Paul Schulze, based on original plans developed by Major General Montgomery C. Meigs of the United States Army Corps of Engineers . It opened in 1881. The National Zoological Park opened in 1889 to accommodate

6039-427: The data gathered from experiments that demonstrated validation of its critical principles. The first full sized model of these to fly was designated "Prandtl-D No. 3", and flown in a series of tests on October 28, 2015 at the Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California . The aircraft is centered around the testing of yawing without a vertical stabilizer. The manager of the project, Albion Bowers, said that

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6138-401: The duration of their elected terms, while citizen Regents serve a maximum of two six-year terms. Regents are compensated on a part-time basis. The chief executive officer (CEO) of the Smithsonian is the secretary, who is appointed by the Board of Regents. The secretary also serves as secretary to the Board of Regents but is not a voting member of that body. The secretary of the Smithsonian has

6237-410: The environmental, visitor, and other stresses placed on the building and its exhibits. Subsequently, these systems are in serious disrepair and exhibits are being harmed. The report noted that the HVAC system is close to failure, and the roof has been compromised so badly that it must be replaced. The Tennessee marble façade has cracked and become warped, and in some areas is so damaged it could fall off

6336-413: The exception being Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City, which charges an admissions fee. The Smithsonian's annual budget is around $ 1.25 billion, with two-thirds coming from annual federal appropriations. Other funding comes from the institution's endowment , private and corporate contributions, membership dues, and earned retail, concession, and licensing revenue. As of 2021,

6435-455: The exhibit funds from private sources, but asked Congress to appropriate the rest. Demolishing the building and erecting a new structure would cost $ 2 billion, the agency stated. In October 2018, the museum announced a 7-year renovation process and began closing some galleries between December 2018 and January 2019, began closing some of the galleries. The museum remained open throughout the renovation process until its closure in early 2020 with

6534-425: The first piece actively acquired by the Smithsonian now in the current NASM collection. After the establishment of the museum, there was no one building that could hold all the items to be displayed, many obtained from the United States Army and United States Navy collections of domestic and captured aircraft from World War I . Some pieces were on display in the Arts and Industries Building , some were stored in

6633-415: The first recipient. Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( / s m ɪ θ ˈ s oʊ n i ə n / smith- SOH -nee-ən ), or simply the Smithsonian , is a group of museums , education and research centers , the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge." Founded on August 10, 1846, it operates as

6732-829: The form of long-term loans. The Smithsonian also has a large number of traveling exhibitions, operated through the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES). In 2008, 58 of these traveling exhibitions went to 510 venues across the country. Smithsonian collections include 156 million artworks, artifacts, and specimens. The National Museum of Natural History houses 145 million of these specimens and artifacts, which are mostly animals preserved in formaldehyde. The Collections Search Center has 9.9 million digital records available online. The Smithsonian Institution Libraries hold 2 million library volumes. Smithsonian Archives hold 156,830 cubic feet (4,441 m ) of archival material. The Smithsonian Institution has many categories of displays that can be visited at

6831-435: The hall will present a "more orderly" appearance, and allow room for the placement of future new exhibits (which will include moving the filming model of the USS Enterprise from the original 1960s Star Trek television series into the hall). The renovation will also include the installation of a "media wall" and touch-screen information kiosks to allow visitors to learn about items on display. An additional gift from Boeing

6930-503: The initiative of Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley , opened in the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in 1967. That same year, the Smithsonian signed an agreement to take over the Cooper Union Museum for the Arts of Decoration (now the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum ). The National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum opened in the Old Patent Office Building (built in 1867) on October 7, 1968. The reuse of an older building continued with

7029-425: The institution's endowment had a total value of about $ 5.4 billion. In many ways, the origin of the Smithsonian Institution can be traced to a group of Washington citizens who, being "impressed with the importance of forming an association for promoting useful knowledge," met on June 28, 1816, to establish the Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences . Officers were elected in October 1816, and

7128-557: The large numbers of aircraft donated to the Smithsonian after World War II and the need for hangar and factory space for the Korean War drove the Smithsonian to look for its own facility to store and restore aircraft. The current Garber Facility was ceded to the Smithsonian by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission in 1952 after the curator Paul E. Garber spotted the wooded area from

7227-531: The legacy bequeathed to the nation and pledged the faith of the United States to the charitable trust on July 1, 1836. The American diplomat Richard Rush was dispatched to England by President Andrew Jackson to collect the bequest. Rush returned in August 1838 with 105 sacks containing 104,960 gold sovereigns . This is approximately $ 500,000 at the time, which is equivalent to $ 14,000,000 in 2023 or equivalent to £12,000,000 in 2023. However, when considering

7326-400: The lost funds with interest and, despite designs on the money for other purposes, convinced his colleagues to preserve it for an institution of science and learning. Finally, on August 10, 1846, President James K. Polk signed the legislation that established the Smithsonian Institution as a trust instrumentality of the United States, to be administered by a Board of Regents and a secretary of

7425-419: The main hall (which had not received a major update since the museum opened in 1976) was funded by a $ 30 million donation from Boeing . The gift, which will be paid over seven years, is the largest corporate donation ever received by the Air and Space Museum. Boeing had previously given donations totaling $ 58 million. The hall will be renamed the "Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall". The renovation (whose total cost

7524-452: The mission to "promote science and the useful arts, and to establish a national museum of natural history," this organization continued to press Congress to establish a museum that would be structured in terms that were very similar to those finally incorporated into the founding of the Smithsonian Institution. Its work helped to develop an underlying philosophy that pushed for the pursuit and development of scientific knowledge that would benefit

7623-656: The museum and special guests from air and space history. The show is currently in its seventh season. The museum also has regular programs called What's New in Aerospace that feature special guests. The museum has four research fellowships: Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History (also known as the Lindbergh Chair,) the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Fellowship, the Verville Fellowship , and

7722-494: The museum as four simple marble -encased cubes containing the smaller and more theatrical exhibits, connected by three spacious steel-and-glass atria which house the larger exhibits such as missiles, airplanes and spacecraft. The mass of the museum is similar to the National Gallery of Art across the National Mall , and uses the same pink Tennessee marble as the National Gallery. Built by Gilbane Building Company ,

7821-567: The museum featuring eight new galleries, the planetarium, museum store and a cafe reopened on October 14, 2022, as part of Phase I while the eastern side scheduled to reopen in 2024. Controversy erupted in March 1994 over a proposed commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Japan . The centerpiece of the exhibit was the Enola Gay , the B-29 bomber that dropped Little Boy on

7920-498: The museum from 1946 until his retirement from the Smithsonian in 1952. Directors have included: The main museum on the mall includes 61 aircraft, 51 large space artifacts, over 2,000 smaller items as of June 1, 2007. The Phoebe Waterman Haas Public Observatory opened its doors to the public in 2009 as part of the celebration of the International Year of Astronomy . It has a 16-inch Boller & Chivens telescope,

8019-453: The museum was completed in 1976. The west glass wall of the building is used for the installation of airplanes, functioning as a giant door. Since 1976, the Air and Space Museum has received basic repair. In 2001, the glass curtain walls were replaced. The Air and Space Museum announced a two-year renovation of its main entrance hall, "Milestones of Flight" in April 2014. The renovation to

8118-480: The museum with too few amenities, main entrances which are partially obscured, and exhibit space which does not meet current ADA accessibility standards. New security measures, required after the September 11 attacks in 2001, have created extensive queues which extend outside the building. Exposed, lengthy queues are both a security hazard and often cause visitors to wait in inclement weather. On June 30, 2015,

8217-529: The museum. Some protesters were pepper sprayed by museum security after a guard was pinned against a wall. One woman was arrested. On December 5, 2013, Smithsonian food workers protested about a living wage . A journalist was detained for illicit filming. Carl W. Mitman was the first head of the museum, under the title of Assistant to the Secretary for the National Air Museum, heading

8316-629: The museums. In 1912, First Lady Helen Herron Taft donated her inauguration gown to the museum to begin the First Ladies' Gown display at the National Museum of American History , one of the Smithsonian's most popular exhibits. The museum displays treasures such as the Star-Spangled Banner , the stove pipe hat that was worn by President Abraham Lincoln , the ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard Of Oz , and

8415-473: The nation, and edify its citizens at the same time. The British scientist James Smithson (1765–1829) left most of his wealth to his nephew Henry James Hungerford. When Hungerford died childless in 1835, the estate passed "to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for the increase & diffusion of knowledge among men", in accordance with Smithson's will. Congress officially accepted

8514-621: The opening of the Renwick Gallery in 1972 in the 1874 Renwick-designed art gallery originally built by local philanthropist William Wilson Corcoran to house the Corcoran Gallery of Art . The first new museum building to open since the National Museum of History and Technology was the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden , which opened in 1974. The National Air and Space Museum , the Smithsonian's largest in terms of floor space, opened in June 1976. Eleven years later,

8613-809: The organization was granted a charter by Congress on April 20, 1818 (this charter expired in 1838). Benjamin Latrobe , who was architect for the US Capitol after the War of 1812, and William Thornton , the architect who designed the Octagon House and Tudor Place , would serve as officers. Other prominent members, who numbered from 30 to 70 during the institute's existence, included John Quincy Adams , Andrew Jackson , Henry Clay , Judge William Cranch , and James Hoban . Honorary members included James Madison , James Monroe , John Adams , Thomas Jefferson , and

8712-443: The original Teddy Bear that was named after President Theodore Roosevelt . In 2016, the Smithsonian's Air & Space museum curators restored the large model Enterprise from the original Star Trek TV series. Following international debates about the decolonisation of museums and the legal and moral justifications of their acquisitions, the Smithsonian adopted a new "ethical returns policy" on April 29, 2022. This will permit

8811-469: The other Smithsonian museums because of the COVID-19 pandemic . On March 3, 2022, the museum temporarily reopened as it continued to operate through the month until March 28, 2022, when it closed for six months. The renovation includes demolishing the food court pavilion (closed in 2017) to make way for the 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m ), three-story, Jeff Bezos Learning Center. The western side of

8910-492: The project, with help from student interns. He believes that with the concepts proven under the Prandtl-D "the time may be coming for a new paradigm in aviation." A tailless flying wing configuration was selected, as it offers the most potential for reducing drag and obtaining high aerodynamic efficiency. Sweeping the wing back also offers the opportunity to ensure stability and controllability, without unduly affecting efficiency. The first two subscale Prandtl-D aircraft had

9009-422: The public in their own communities about how Latinos are enriching America's cultural fabric." The institution publishes Smithsonian magazine monthly and Air & Space magazine bimonthly. Smithsonian was the result of Secretary of the Smithsonian S. Dillon Ripley asking the retired editor of Life magazine Edward K. Thompson to produce a magazine "about things in which the Smithsonian Institution

9108-419: The reading of scientific and literary productions, but this was continued for only a short time, as the number attending declined rapidly. Eighty-five communications by 26 people were made to Congress during the entire life of the society, with more than a half relating to astronomy or mathematics. Among all the activities planned by the institute, only a few were actually implemented. Two were the establishment of

9207-640: The staff and unfulfilled financial obligations to sponsors existed. The website's quality was poor, and the center did not have a public affairs manager, a programs director, adequate human resources support, or cohesive mission statement. After difficult times in the first few years, the center improved. According to the Smithsonian, the center "support[s] scholarly research, exhibitions, public and educational programs, web-based content and virtual platforms, and collections and archives. [It] also manage[s] leadership and professional development programs for Latino youth, emerging scholars and museum professionals." Today,

9306-413: The time it went public. This included 192 gifts of at least $ 1 million. Members of the boards of directors of various Smithsonian museums donated $ 372 million. The Smithsonian said that funds raised would go toward completion of the National Museum of African American History and Culture building, and renovations of the National Air and Space Museum , National Museum of American History , and

9405-546: The website features a high-tech virtual museum including self-guided virtual tours of past and present exhibits. The Smithsonian Latino Center's Young Ambassadors Program (YAP) is a program within the Latino Center that reaches out to Latino high school students with the goal of encouraging them to become leaders in arts, sciences, and the humanities. Students selected for the program travel to Washington, D.C. for an "enrichment seminar" that lasts approximately five days. Afterwards, students return to their communities to serve in

9504-850: Was appropriated for meteorological research. The institution became a magnet for young scientists from 1857 to 1866, who formed a group called the Megatherium Club . The Smithsonian played a critical role as the US partner institution in early bilateral scientific exchanges with the Academy of Sciences of Cuba . Construction began on the Smithsonian Institution Building ("the Castle") in 1849. Designed by architect James Renwick Jr. , its interiors were completed by general contractor Gilbert Cameron. The building opened in 1855. The Smithsonian's first expansion came with

9603-559: Was established as a trust instrumentality by act of Congress. More than two-thirds of the Smithsonian's workforce of some 6,300 persons are employees of the federal government. The Smithsonian Institution Office of Protection Services oversees security at the Smithsonian facilities and enforces laws and regulations for National Capital Parks together with the United States Park Police . The president's 2011 budget proposed just under $ 800 million in support for

9702-605: Was intended to provide for future experimental low drag and aircraft designs, which previously have had issues of controllability. The program built on theoretical wing studies by Ludwig Prandtl in the early 1930s. The Prandtl-D's designs also drew on glider concepts of the German Horten brothers Reimar and Walter, and incorporate the conclusions of NASA aerodynamics pioneers R.T. Jones and Richard T. Whitcomb . Albion Bowers, NASA Armstrong chief scientist and Prandtl-D project manager, brought together these theories and led

9801-479: Was not revealed) began in April 2014, and will involve the temporary removal of some exhibits before the hall is refurbished. Because some exhibits represent century-old achievements that no longer resonate with the public, some items will be moved to other locations in the museum while new exhibits are installed. The first new exhibit, a 1930s wind tunnel, will be installed in November 2014. Following completion,

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