Smithsonian Voices

From the Smithsonian Museums

An illustration depicts a large planet orbiting a distant star, amid a cloud of dust and rocky debris.

Patience Is a Virtue for Astronomers Searching for Signs of Extraterrestrial Intelligence

The search for radio signals from an extraterrestrial civilization

An artist's renderign of a cavernous museum exhibit space with a dark ceiling illuminated by images of bright white stars and a spiral galaxy. On the floor of the gallery, numerous visitors wander past glass display cases filled with artifacts.

A New Museum Exhibit Gives a Grand Overview on the History of the Telescope

A sleek jet aircraft painted red, white, and black flies over an air base in the desert.

Does a Fighter Pilot Have to Be Human?

The smooth surface of a round planet is partially illuminated by the sun; the planet's other half is in shadow. The planet is surrounded by thousands of rings.

The Weird, Wild and Wonderful Universe, According to the Internet's Favorite Astronomer

A stunning panorama of the Martian desert with a twilight sky. The landscape appears light rust and dull blue and is covered with boulders. A hill can be seen on the right.

For 20 years, Robots Have Inhabited Mars. What Keeps Them Humming?

Adam Savage poses heroically in his spacesuit, which appears white, bulbous, and dusty despite never going to space. His face, wearing glasses, is illuminated behind the transparent plastic bubble that forms most of the helmet.

Adam Savage's Quest to Build His Own Spacesuit

A museum display features a statue of a male astronaut standing with his arms outstretched in front of a metal sculpture lit by red and purple lighting. A museum visitor stands in a similar pose in front of the statue.

A Cultural History of Soviet Cosmonauts

A small silver pin shows a smiling Snoopy, a cartoon dog, wearing a spacesuit with a large clear glass helmet, performing his iconic happy beagle dance.

The Story of Snoopy in Space

A multitude of stars packed together in a dense region of space, shining brightly in the surrounding darkness. A bright blue cloud in the lower half of the image with pitch black patches appearing within the cloud

James Webb Space Telescope Sees Features Astronomers Have Yet to Explain

The Boeing Aviation Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is a vast open space filled with airplanes on both the floor and hanging from the ceiling, tilted at angles that convey the impression of flight.

20 Years of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center

Peregrine Lunar Lander

This Object Represents a New Approach to Moon Exploration

Underside view of space shuttle in flight with blue sky background.

Space Shuttle Astronauts Tell All

The pitch black night is illuminated by a bright white-hot rocket engine plume, which illuminates clouds of smoke surrounding the launch pad.

How Commercial Landers Are Changing Lunar Exploration

In this pastel drawing, 14 bluish white rays radiate out and upward from a dark half-moon shape flanked by trees. White stars are visible in the night sky.

These Depictions of Celestial Wonders Helped Make Astronomy Mainstream

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Barbie: An Astronaut for the Ages

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Ground Control to Major Tom: How David Bowie Soundtracked the Moon Landing

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Preserving Launch Infrastructure

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Five Things On Board NASA's Artemis I Mission

Michael Collins, the Museum's third director, stands before the steel skeleton of the new National Air and Space Museum in July 1974.

Carrying the Fire

Michael Collins' NASA astronaut portrait.

Remembering Michael Collins

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A World War II Veteran Recalls the Adventure of Patrolling the Pacific Aboard Flying Boats

Flying Boats Were Once the Luxury Liners of the Air

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