Frommer's Review
With the opening of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in December 2003, the National Air and Space Museum now bills itself as "One museum, two locations." It's not realistic, however, to visit both museums in 1 day. The flagship museum on the National Mall consumes 2 or 3 hours -- longer, if you attend an IMAX film or planetarium show; the round-trip to the satellite Udvar-Hazy Center, located on the grounds of Washington-Dulles International Airport, takes about 2 hours (space fans might say 2 weeks), and the touring of that museum another 2 or 3 hours. You could do it, but you'd be frantic.
So start with this one, the original, ever-popular Air and Space Museum on the Mall. The museum, now in its 32nd year, chronicles the story of the mastery of flight, from Kitty Hawk to outer space. It holds the largest collection of historic aircraft and spacecraft in the world -- so many, in fact, that the museum is able to display only about 10% of its artifacts at any one time, hence the opening of the Udvar-Hazy Center.
During the tourist season and on holidays, arrive before 10am to make a beeline for the film ticket line when the doors open. The not-to-be-missed IMAX films shown here are immensely popular, and tickets to most shows sell out quickly. You can purchase same-day tickets by phone or in person at the Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater box office on the first floor, or in advance, online, up to 24 hours before showtime. Surcharges apply to phone and online orders. Two or more films play each day, most with aeronautical or space-exploration themes; To Fly and Roving Mars are two that were running in 2007. Tickets cost $8.50 for adults, $7 for ages 2 to 12, $7.50 for ages 60 or older; they're free for children under 2. You can also see IMAX films most evenings after the museum's closing; call for details (tel. 877/932-4629).
You'll also need tickets to attend a show at the Albert Einstein Planetarium, which creates "an astronomical adventure" as projectors display space imagery upon a 70-foot-diameter dome, making you feel as if you're traveling in 3-D through the cosmos. The planetarium's newest feature is the 23-minute Cosmic Collisions, which takes you on a trip through time and space, where you encounter cosmic collisions and hypersonic impacts, as narrated by Robert Redford. Shown less frequently is the planetarium's longtime feature, called "Infinity Express: A 20-Minute Tour of the Universe," which gives you the sensation that you are zooming through the solar system, as it explores such questions as "How big is the universe?" and "Where does it end?" Tickets are $8.50 for adults, $7 for ages 2 to 12, $7.50 for ages 60 or older.
Among the 22 exhibitions on display throughout the museum is one that children especially love: How Things Fly, which includes wind and smoke tunnels, a boardable Cessna 150 airplane, and dozens of interactive exhibits that demonstrate principles of flight, aerodynamics, and propulsion. All the aircraft are originals. Kids also flock to the walk-through Skylab orbital workshop, part of the Space Race exhibition on the first floor. Both children and adults stand in line to take their turn on the museum's Flight Simulators (the Udvar-Hazy Center has several, too) You'll be strapped in and given a joystick, and for about 5 minutes you'll truly feel as if you are in the cockpit and airborne, maneuvering your craft up, down, and upside-down on a wild adventure, thanks to virtual reality images and high-tech sounds. You must pay $7 ($7.50 at the Udvar-Hazy Center) to enjoy the ride and measure at least 48 inches to go it alone. (Children under 48 in. must measure at least 42 in. and be accompanied by an adult.)
Other galleries highlight the solar system, U.S. manned space flights, sea-air operations, and aviation during both world wars. An important exhibit is Beyond the Limits: Flight Enters the Computer Age, illustrating the primary applications of computer technology to aerospace. Explore the Universe presents the major discoveries that have shaped the current scientific view of the universe; it illustrates how the universe is taking shape, and probes the mysteries that remain. Hundreds of space and aircraft artifacts dangle before your eyes everywhere you look, but don't miss the Wright Brothers 1903 Flyer, which hangs from the ceiling in the exhibit, Milestones of Flight. In late 2007, the museum debuted America by Air, an exhibit that covers an expanded history of commercial air travel.
The museum's cafeteria, The Wright Place, offers food from three popular American chains: McDonald's, Boston Chicken, and Donato's Pizza; its three-level, 12,000-square-foot shop is the largest Smithsonian store.
At the Udvar-Hazy Center you'll find two hangars, one for aviation artifacts, the other for space artifacts, and a 164-foot-tall observation tower for watching planes leave and arrive at Dulles Airport. The center's James S. McDonnell Space Hangar stretches the length of three football fields and stands 10 stories high, the better to house the enormous Enterprise, NASA's first space shuttle; the tiny "Anita," a spider carried on Skylab for web formation experiments; the manned maneuvering unit used for the first untethered spacewalk; a full-scale prototype of the Mars Pathfinder Lander; and Pegasus, the first aircraft-launched rocket booster to carry satellites into space. Eventually, the gallery will hold more than 200 aircraft and 135 spacecraft. The center will also serve as the Air and Space Museum's primary restoration facility, and the public will be able to watch specialists at work. This location also shows IMAX films.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
