A look at history

Docent Bill Haugen explains the special tiles on the shuttle.

A busload of aviation enthusiasts enjoyed the day November 8 at the Smithsonians's Udvar-Hazy Center. Members and guests got whilrwind tours of the vast aviation and aerospace collection.
A special thanks to Tom Jones and Dave Waldrup who joined the tour and added special insights.
The museum is planning its next bus trip in the spring and suggestions are welcome.

Astronaut Dick Gordon dies

Dick Gordon shows off Museum award presented by  Guy Walsh at Gemini dinner

Gemini and Apollo astronaut Richard "Dick" Gordon died Nov. 7 at age 88. A Navy veteran, he was a test pilot when he joined NASA's astronaut corps. 
Dick was the guest of honor when the Museum marked the 45th anniversary of the Gemini program in 2011.  He was an informative part of panel discussions, which spotlighted several people who worked on the program Maryland. Martin Marietta played a key role in the Titan missile used in the program.
Everyone who met Dick was impressed by his warmth and remember him fondly.

Look into planetary defenses

What happens when an asteroid or other near-earth object threatens us?

On November 6 Cheryl Reed, project manager of the DART program to redirect an asteroid, told audience about all the exciting programs at Johns Hopkins Applies Physics Laboratory.  Dr. Reed described NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test which is scheduled to launch in 2020 and will impact "Didymoon" in 2022.