Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Udvar-Hazy Center)
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Template:Redirect Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox museum

The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center is an annex of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum located at Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, Virginia, which houses much of the museum's collection of aircraft, spacecraft, and rockets, which are too large to be displayed at the main facility on the National Mall. The large hangar contains some of the most iconic artifacts in aviation history, including the Space Shuttle Discovery, the Enola Gay, and the Boeing 367-80, as well as examples of the SR-71 Blackbird and Concorde.

The Template:Convert facility was made possible by a $65 million donation in October 1999 to the Smithsonian Institution by Steven F. Udvar-Házy, an immigrant from Hungary and co-founder of the International Lease Finance Corporation, an aircraft leasing corporation.<ref name=Small2003>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Prior to the facility's opening in 2003, much of the museum's collection had been inaccessible to the public, as its size vastly outstripped the space available to the museum on the National Mall. Most of the collection had been stored out of sight at the museum's conservation shop, the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility in Silver Hill, Maryland. After Udvar-Hazy center made much of the collection available to the public in 2003, the restoration and conservation facilities were moved to the facility in 2010 with the construction of an additional wing of the museum funded by Airbus. The restoration facility includes observation windows, allowing the public to view some of the preservation work.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Udvar-Hazy Center receives over 1.2 million visitors annually, as of 2023.

The Udvar-Hazy Center is directly attached to the Dulles International Airport runways via a private taxiway, allowing some accessions to be flown directly to the facility rather than requiring disassembly and ground transport. The airport's large runways can accommodate any size of commercial or military aircraft.

The facility also hosts the Airbus IMAX Theater, a single screen 4K laser cinema which projects onto the largest IMAX screen in the region. It plays both box-office releases and special screenings.

Architecture and facilities

File:Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum - Udvar-Hazy Center (53890521479).jpg
The exterior of the Udvar-Hazy center in 2024.

Designed by Hellmuth, Obata, and Kassabaum, who also designed the National Air and Space Museum building, the Center required 15 years of preparation and was built by Hensel Phelps Construction Co.<ref name=Triplett2003>Triplett, W. "Hold everything!" Smithsonian. Vol. 34, December 2003, p. 59.</ref> The exhibition areas comprise two large hangars, the Template:Convert Boeing Aviation Hangar and the Template:Convert James S. McDonnell Space Hangar. The Donald D. Engen Observation Tower provides a view of landing operations at adjacent Washington Dulles International Airport. The museum also contains an IMAX theater.<ref name=presskit/> A taxiway connects the museum to the airport.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>

An expansion of the Udvar-Hazy Center is dedicated to the behind-the-scenes care of the Smithsonian's collection of aircraft, spacecraft, related artifacts and archival materials. On December 2, 2008, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center received a gift of $6 million for phase two from Airbus Americas Inc. — the largest corporate gift to the Smithsonian Institution in 2008.<ref name=":0" />

The wing includes:

  • The Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar — spacious enough to accommodate several aircraft at one time with a second-floor viewing area designed to give visitors a behind-the-scenes look.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
  • Archives — the foremost collection of documentary records of the history, science and technology of aeronautics and space flight will be housed in a single location for the first time, providing researchers with ample space and equipment.<ref name=":0" />
  • The Emil Buehler Conservation Laboratory — provides conservators much-needed space to develop and execute specialized preservation strategies for artifacts.<ref name=":0" />
  • Collections processing unit — a dedicated loading dock and specially designed secure area for initial inspection and analysis of artifacts.<ref>National Air and Space Museum Receives Gift from Airbus for Phase Two of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center Template:Webarchive</ref>

A further expansion of the collections center was approved in December 2016.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The addition will be made up of three additional storage modules on the south side of the building.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

File:Panorama of the interior of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.jpg
Main exhibition display area

Collection

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} The center was opened on December 15, 2003. The Udvar-Hazy Center displays historic aviation and space artifacts, especially items too large for the National Air and Space Museum's building on the National Mall, including:<ref name="presskit">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Template:Div col

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> the military version of the Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") airliner

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> the first balloon to fly around the world non-stop

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> Template:Div col end

The museum is still in the process of installing exhibits, and 169 aircraft and 152 large space artifacts were on display as of May 2012;<ref name=presskit/> plans called for the eventual installation of over 200 aircraft.<ref>"Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center: Looking Ahead" Template:Webarchive Accessed September 30, 2006</ref> Over 5,809 objects out of the 60,000 objects held in trust are on display as of 2016.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The current list is maintained at the Objects On Display page of the Smithsonian Institution NASM Collections site.

Events

A number of events are held at the museum throughout the year.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> These include lectures, book signings, sleepovers, and events for children. Some of the museum's larger events include Air & Scare for Halloween,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> an open house,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Innovations in Flight: Family Day and Outdoor Aviation Display.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Media appearances

The center made its first media appearance in the 2009 film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The center remained open while filming took place, although certain areas were closed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See also

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Commons and category

Template:Smithsonian Institution Template:Fairfax County, Virginia topics Template:Space Shuttle Discovery Template:Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Template:Authority control

Retrieved from "https://wiki.sarg.dev/index.php?title=Steven_F._Udvar-Hazy_Center&oldid=505077"