Description: This F5D-1 Skylancer fighter aircraft was manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company of Santa Monica, California, and dates from 1956-1960. The fuselage, wings and tail are painted white and orange. The nose is painted orange and features a black V-shaped design, with a protruding silver pilot tube. Each side of the aircraft features a black and white camera calibration decal (meant to help focus cameras that record test flights), and an arrow with text, "RESCUE," pointed down toward the nose. Neil Armstrong of Wapakoneta, Ohio, flew this aircraft as a NASA research pilot between September 1960 and September 1962. The Douglas Aircraft Company built four Skylancer aircraft, which were used during the Dyna-Soar research program, meant to simulate flight characteristics of a planned space vehicle. The Dyna-Soar program aimed to launch a winged aircraft able to enter the atmosphere and glide to a conventional landing following a mission in space, but was cancelled in December 1963. After the program ended, the aircraft remained at the NASA Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. In 1970, the aircraft was retired at Wright Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio. On May 21, 1972, the aircraft was driven to the Armstrong Air & Space Museum in Wapakoneta, Ohio, where it was placed on a concrete display pedestal. The aircraft remained on display as part of a long-term loan to the Ohio History Connection from the NASA Flight Research Center (renamed Armstrong Flight Research Center) until September 11, 2017, when it was removed for conservation. In Spring 2017, NASA AFRC transferred ownership of the aircraft to the Ohio History Connection. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: H100015
Subjects: Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Aeronautics; Science and Technology; Aircraft; Air pilots; Space flight;
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio); Santa Monica (California)
 

Description: Two photographs, taken on board the space shuttle Discovery during its seven-day mission in 1984, include Akron native Judith Resnik. The first photograph is a group shot of the six crew members, shown (counterclockwise from center): Crew Commander Henry N. Hartsfield Jr., Pilot Michael L. Coats, Mission Specialists Steven A. Hawley and Judith A. Resnik, Payload Specialist Charles D. Walker, and Mission Specialist Richard N. "Nike" Mullane. A second photograph shows Resnik on the flight deck of the Discovery looking out toward the mid-deck. Both photographs measure 8" x 10" (20.32 x 25.4 cm). Resnik (1949-1986) was born in Akron and graduated from Firestone High School. She earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Carnegie-Mellon University in 1970, and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1977. She began working at RCA as a design engineer in 1971 and was a biomedical engineer and staff fellow in the Laboratory of Neurophysiology at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, from 1974 to 1977. She was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1978. During her first mission in space, Resnik and the crew of the Discovery became known as "Icebusters" by successfully removing hazardous ice particles from the orbiter using the Remote Manipulator System. Resnik was killed during her second mission on January 28, 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3110_3671706_007
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Ohio Women; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Space flight; Flight crews; Resnik, Judith, 1949-1986; Discovery (Spacecraft); Challenger (Spacecraft)
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio)
 

Description: Six 2" x 2" (5.08 x 5.08 cm) photographs document a homecoming parade held for astronaut Neil Armstrong in 1969. More than 80,000 supporters greeted Armstrong upon his return to Wapakoneta, Ohio on September 6, 1969. Hope served as marshal for the event, and guests included "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon, and Dr. Albert Sabin, who invented the polio vaccine. Hope joked with the crowd that Armstrong was adjusting well to life on Earth after his space visit, "but he keeps throwing his shoes out the window and eating toothpaste," referring to the system of trash disposal on early flights and the practice of packaging astronauts' food in tubes. Neil A. Armstrong (b. 1930), the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high-speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3101_3737076_007
Subjects: Science and Technology; Arts and Entertainment; Celebrations; Parades & processions; Hope, Bob, 1903-2003; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Flight; Aeronautics; Sabin, Albert B. (Albert Bruce), 1906-1993; Astronauts
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: Seven 2" x 2" (5.08 x 5.08 cm) photographs show astronaut Neil Armstrong, comedian Bob Hope, and Ohio Governor James Rhodes in the grandstand at a homecoming parade held for Armstrong in 1969. More than 80,000 supporters greeted Armstrong upon his return to Wapakoneta, Ohio on September 6, 1969. Hope served as marshal for the event, and guests included "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon, and Dr. Albert Sabin, who invented the polio vaccine. Hope joked with the crowd that Armstrong was adjusting well to life on Earth after his space visit, "but he keeps throwing his shoes out the window and eating toothpaste," referring to the system of trash disposal on early flights and the practice of packaging astronauts' food in tubes. Neil A. Armstrong (b. 1930), the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high-speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. Bob Hope (1903-2003), born Leslie Townes Hope, moved to Cleveland from England with his family in 1907. After graduating from East High School in Cleveland, Hope spent time as an amateur boxer before entering show business. He worked in vaudeville and on Broadway before turning to radio and then television. Hope first began performing for troops stationed overseas in World War I, and continued through the first Gulf War. He starred in more than fifty films and was awarded five special Oscars for humanitarian work and in 1985 he was awarded the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors for Lifetime Achievement. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3101_3735846_002
Subjects: Ohio Government; Science and Technology; Arts and Entertainment; Celebrations; Parades & processions; Hope, Bob, 1903-2003; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Rhodes, James A. (James Allen), 1909-2001; Governors
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows an airplane is taking off from Cleveland Municipal Airport, with a caption which reads "Modern Plane taking off, Cleveland Airport. Ohio Picture Book. Page: 39. Picture: 48 (lower). Credit: None." The Cleveland Airport was built in 1925 and is located 8 miles southwest of Public Square at Brookpark Road and Riverside Drive. The airport, originally known as Cleveland Municipal, was renamed Cleveland-Hopkins International Airport on July 26, 1951, to commemorate the 82nd birthday of William R. Hopkins who founded it. It was shortly after World War I, that Cleveland envisioned an airport. The airport did not become possible until the federal government was convinced that the city could provide an adequate facility for U.S. Air Mail planes to stop in Cleveland on their coast-to-coast flights. It was on July 1, 1925, that the U.S. Air Mail made the first flight at the airport. Its first terminal building was constructed in 1927 and featured the world's first airport control tower. In 1929, the National Air Races held in Cleveland for the first time as part of the ceremonies dedicating Cleveland's Municipal Airport. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B04F11_46_01
Subjects: Cleveland (Ohio); Cleveland Municipal Airport; Transportation--Ohio--History.; Airports; Airplanes; Flight; Works Progress Administration; Ohio Federal Writers' Project
Places: Cleveland (Ohio); Cuyahoga County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 2" x 2" (5.08 x 5.08 cm) photograph of astronaut Neil Armstrong and comedian Ed McMahon was taken at a homecoming parade held for Armstrong in 1969. More than 80,000 supporters greeted Armstrong upon his return to Wapakoneta, Ohio on September 6, 1969. Bob Hope served as marshal for the event, and guests included "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon, and Dr. Albert Sabin, who invented the polio vaccine. Hope joked with the crowd that Armstrong was adjusting well to life on Earth after his space visit, "but he keeps throwing his shoes out the window and eating toothpaste," referring to the system of trash disposal on early flights and the practice of packaging astronauts' food in tubes. Neil A. Armstrong (b. 1930), the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high-speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3101_3735840_015
Subjects: Science and Technology; Arts and Entertainment; Celebrations; Parades & processions; Hope, Bob, 1903-2003; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Television personalities
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 5" by 7" (12.7 by 17.8 cm) photograph depicts the F5D Skylancer that Neil Armstrong flew in the 1960s. It is permanently exhibited in Wapakoneta near the Neil Armstrong Air & Space Museum, the building was named in honor of Armstrong, first man to set foot on the moon. Neil A. Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio on August 5, 1930. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3198_3806046_001
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Architecture; Flight; Aeronautics; Airplanes; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Galleries & museums
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: Three photographs document Akron native Judith Resnik's astronaut candidate training from May to August 1978. In the first photograph Resnik is preparing to simulate a parachute jump at Vance Air Force Base in Enid, Oklahoma. In the second photograph, taken in Homestead, Florida, Resnik is completing a water survival course, to prepare her for emergency ejection from an aircraft over water. In a third photograph, taken at Ellington Air Force Base in Houston, Texas, Resnik is shown training in a T-38 aircraft with pilot Dr. Richard A. Laidley. The photographs measure 8" x 10" (20.32 x 25.4 cm). Resnik (1949-1986) was born in Akron and graduated from Firestone High School. She earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Carnegie-Mellon University in 1970, and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1977. She began working at RCA as a design engineer in 1971 and was a biomedical engineer and staff fellow in the Laboratory of Neurophysiology at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, from 1974 to 1977. She was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1978. During her first mission in space, Resnik and the crew of the Discovery became known as "Icebusters" by successfully removing hazardous ice particles from the orbiter using the Remote Manipulator System. Resnik was killed during her second mission on January 28, 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3110_3671676_003
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Ohio Women; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Space flight; Resnik, Judith, 1949-1986; Discovery (Spacecraft); Challenger (Spacecraft); Airplanes
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio); Enid (Oklahoma); Homestead (Florida); Houston (Texas)
 

Description: Two photographs show Akron native Judith Resnik in January 1978, when she was named an astronaut candidate. The photographs measure 8" x 10" (20.32 x 25.4 cm). Resnik (1949-1986) was born in Akron and graduated from Firestone High School. She earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Carnegie-Mellon University in 1970, and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1977. She began working at RCA as a design engineer in 1971 and was a biomedical engineer and staff fellow in the Laboratory of Neurophysiology at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, from 1974 to 1977. She was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1978. During her first mission in space, Resnik and the crew of the Discovery became known as "Icebusters" by successfully removing hazardous ice particles from the orbiter using the Remote Manipulator System. Resnik was killed during her second mission on January 28, 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3110_3671690_001
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Ohio Women; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Space flight; Resnik, Judith, 1949-1986; Discovery (Spacecraft); Challenger (Spacecraft)
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio); Houston (Texas)
 

Description: This 5" by 7" (12.7 by 17.8 cm) photograph shows visitors enjoying the Gemini 8 capsule on display at the Armstrong Air & Space Museum in Wapakoneta. It has been tilted on its base to allow visitors to inspect the interior of the spacecraft. The Gemini 8 spacecraft was flown into space by astronauts Neil Armstrong and David Scott in March 1966. The craft was launched by a Titan II rocket. During this mission, the astronauts performed the first rendezvous and docking in space. Near disaster brought the mission to an early end when a rocket thruster stuck open, causing the spacecraft to tumble out of control. Armstrong was able to regain control of the craft and make an emergency landing. The spacecraft measures 130" x 90" (3.3 x 2.28 m). Neil A. Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio on August 5, 1930. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3197_3806040_001
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Arts and Entertainment; Flight; Aeronautics; Aeronautics; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Galleries & museums; Space vehicles
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: Two 5" by 7" (12.7 by 17.8 cm) photographs depict the construction of the Neil Armstrong Air & Space Museum, which was opened to the public July 20, 1972. The third image, measuring 5" by 7" (12.7 by 17.8 cm) depicts the completed building named in honor of Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the moon. The museum in Wapakoneta is managed by the Ohio Historical Society. Neil A. Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio on August 5, 1930. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3194_3806014_001
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Architecture; Flight; Aeronautics; Construction; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Galleries & museums
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)
 

Description: Three 8" by 10" (20.32 by 25.4 cm) photographs show architectural renderings of the Neil Armstrong Air & Space Museum, which was opened to the public on July 20,1972. The first image is an architectural drawing of the site. Two others depict a scale model of the museum named in honor of Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the moon. The museum in Wapakoneta is managed by the Ohio Historical Society. Neil A. Armstrong was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio on August 5, 1930. He received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University. After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. For the next 17 years he worked for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, he was a project pilot on many pioneering high-speed aircraft. Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission, which was launched on March 16, 1966. As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3193_3806000_001
Subjects: Transportation; Science and Technology; Architecture; Flight; Aeronautics; Astronauts; Architectural models; Architectural drawings; Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012; Galleries & museums
Places: Wapakoneta (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio)