Join us for opening weekend!
Be among the FIRST to experience humankind's greatest achievement.
It’s the first weekend to see Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission exhibition and we’re celebrating with special events, activities, and giveaways. Everyone who enters the exhibition during this opening weekend will get a FREE keepsake to commemorate their experience.
Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission
Saturday, April 13
- 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- Moon-themed VR experiences
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) demonstrations and activities
- Weekend Family Workshops "Lunar Phases"
- Learn how the Moon, our closest celestial neighbor, changes its appearance throughout the month and then make a craft showing its 8 major phases.
- Noon to 12:45 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mini Talks
- Join scientists Amanda Hendrix from the Planetary Science Institute and Tyler Thompson from Arizona State University as they tell us how this robotic spacecraft maps the Moon.
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mini Talks
- 1:00 to 1:15 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- Aerospace Update
- Weekly recap of the latest news in astronomy, aviation, and spaceflight from our own experts. Q&A to follow.
- Aerospace Update
- 2:00 to 3:30 PM in the William M. Allen Theater
- Behind the Scenes of Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission
- Smithsonian Curator Michael J. Neufeld describes how he and his team developed the national tour of the command module Columbia and shares plans for the permanent exhibit in Washington D.C. Dr. Neufeld will sign copies of his new book, Spaceflight: A Concise History
- Behind the Scenes of Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission
Sunday, April 14
- 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- Moon-themed VR experiences
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) demonstrations and activities
- Weekend Family Workshops "Lunar Phases"
- Learn how the Moon, our closest celestial neighbor, changes its appearance throughout the month and then make a craft showing its 8 major phases.
- 1:00 PM to 1:45 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mini Talks
- Join scientists Amanda Hendrix from the Planetary Science Institute and Tyler Thompson from Arizona State University as they tell us how this robotic spacecraft maps the Moon.
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mini Talks
- 2:00 to 3:00 PM in the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery
- The Future of the Final Frontier
- As we approach the golden anniversary of the Apollo
Moon landings, a new Space Age is taking shape. The exploration of space is now
a global phenomenon, with many new players, both nation-states and private
industry participating. Join NASA Solar System Ambassador Ron Hobbs for a
review of some of the history-making recent events and a hint at what is to
come.
- As we approach the golden anniversary of the Apollo
Moon landings, a new Space Age is taking shape. The exploration of space is now
a global phenomenon, with many new players, both nation-states and private
industry participating. Join NASA Solar System Ambassador Ron Hobbs for a
review of some of the history-making recent events and a hint at what is to
come.
- The Future of the Final Frontier
Don't have your Destination Moon timed-entry ticket yet?
To honor our newest exhibition, Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission, we're proud to introduce a new program series to complement the stories behind the artifacts, people, and places that made the Moon landing possible.
To The Moon! program series will feature a wide-ranging selection of scientists, space experts, historians, authors, pilots, and more, who will speak about lunar exploration, past, present, and future.
