Fly Marines

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, left, along with former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States Sen. John Glenn and Gen. John R. Dailey, director of the National Air and Space Museum, right, look around the Fly Marines exhibit at the museum, Wednesday evening, June 27, 2012, in Washington. Bolden spoke later at the 2012 John H. Glenn Lecture in Space History.

Photo Credit: NASA/Paul E. Alers

NASA Transfers Shuttle Discovery to National Air and Space Museum

Michael Braukus/Michael Curie

Headquarters, Washington                               

202-358-1100

michael.j.braukus@nasa.gov / michael.curie@nasa.gov

Focuses on Bold New Era of Space Exploration

WASHINGTON -- NASA transferred space shuttle Discovery to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum during a ceremony Thursday, April 19, at the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.

"Today, while we look back at Discovery's amazing legacy, I also want to look forward to what she and the shuttle fleet helped to make possible," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. "As NASA transfers the shuttle orbiters to museums across the country, we are embarked on an exciting new space exploration journey. Relying on American ingenuity and know-how, NASA is partnering with private industry to provide crew and cargo transportation to the International Space Station, while developing the most powerful rocket ever built to take the nation farther than ever before into the solar system."

National Air and Space Museum Director, General John "Jack" Dailey said, "Discovery has distinguished itself as the champion of America's shuttle fleet. In its new home, it will shine as an American icon, educating and inspiring people of all ages for generations to come. The Museum is committed to teaching and inspiring youngsters, so that they will climb the ladder of academic success and choose professions that will help America be competitive and successful in the world of tomorrow."

In this new era of exploration, NASA will build the capabilities to send humans deeper into space than ever before. NASA is using the space station as a test bed and stepping stone for the journey ahead. The agency is changing the way it does business and fostering a commercial industry that will safely service low Earth orbit, so NASA can focus its energy and resources on sending astronauts to an asteroid by 2025 and eventually to Mars in the 2030s.

The space station is the centerpiece of NASA's human spaceflight activities in low Earth orbit. It is fully staffed with an international crew of six, and American astronauts will continue to live and work there 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, as they have for more than 11 years. Part of the U.S. portion of the station has been designated as a national laboratory, and NASA is committed to using this unique resource for scientific research.

The station is testing exploration technologies such as autonomous refueling of spacecraft, advanced life support systems and human/robotic interfaces. Commercial companies are well on their way to providing cargo and crew flights to the station, allowing NASA to focus its attention on the next steps into our solar system.

For more information about NASA, visit http://www.nasa.gov.

- end -

Space Shuttle Discovery Readied for Demate

NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft with the space shuttle Discovery mated on top rolls into position for demating at Washington Dulles International Airport, Wednesday, April 18, 2012, in Sterling, VA. Discovery, the first orbiter retired from NASA’s shuttle fleet, completed 39 missions, spent 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times, and traveled 148,221,675 miles. NASA will transfer Discovery to the National Air and Space Museum to begin its new mission to commemorate past achievements in space and to educate and inspire future generations of explorers.

Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

Space Shuttle Discovery Flown Over the U.S. Capitol

Space shuttle Discovery, mounted atop a NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, is seen as it flies near the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, April 17, 2012, in Washington. Discovery, the first orbiter retired from NASA’s shuttle fleet, completed 39 missions, spent 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times, and traveled 148,221,675 miles. NASA will transfer Discovery to the National Air and Space Museum to begin its new mission to commemorate past achievements in space and to educate and inspire future generations of explorers.

Image Credit: NASA/Smithsonian Institution/Harold Dorwin

Discovery’s Final Flight

By Jessica L. Tozer

Today marks the end of an era, friends.  The space shuttle Discovery will rise early this morning and make one last trip.  The final journey?  From Florida to its new home at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

It’s been a long road from space to the Smithsonian, and the Discovery is getting ready to settle down in the world’s biggest aeronautical nursing home.

And she has certainly earned her retirement.

Discovery has flown more missions than any other shuttle – more than any other spacecraft, in fact. After 38 missions to date, and more than 5,600 trips around the Earth, Discovery has carried satellites such as the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit and sent the Ulysses robotic probe on its way to the Sun. It was the first shuttle to rendezvous with the Russian Mir Space Station, and it delivered the Japanese Kibo laboratory to the International Space Station.

180 people have flown aboard Discovery, including the first female shuttle pilot and the first female shuttle commander (who happen to be the same person – Eileen Collins), the first African American spacewalker (Bernard Harris) and the first sitting member of congress to fly in space (Jake Garn).

The Discovery a seasoned government professional, and after years of service to her country, we’re saying goodbye in style.

Discovery will depart NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a modified Boeing 747, early this morning. Basically, she’s getting a piggyback ride to the final destination.  Not a lot of work for her but hey, she’s earned an easy ride if you ask me.  It is expected to fly over the Washington, D.C. area between 10:00 and 11:00 am and will then land at Washington Dulles International Airport.

If you’re in the Washington D.C. area, the Smithsonian has some neat ideas about where to go to catch a glimpse of the old girl as she rides on home, including the chance to watch Discovery land.

As the sun sets on this day, so does the space flight career of one of the most significant – and I think iconic – space shuttles of our time.  I have to say, it’s been great watching you fly.  The space program is forever changed, thanks to everything you’ve done, and I am grateful for the chance to have been a witness to it.  Thanks for everything, Discovery.

Welcome home.

Information for this article provided by NASA.