Hutchinson Community College - Kansas Cosmosphere Hutchinson Kansas 9-14-2014

Cosmosphere is an international science education center and space museum in

Hutchinson, Kansas Hutchinson is the largest city in and the county seat of Reno County, Kansas, Reno County, Kansas, United States. The city is located on the Arkansas River. It has been home to salt mines since 1887 (thus its nickname of "Salt City") but locals ...

, United States, located on the northeast corner of Plum Street and 11th Avenue, next to the Hutchinson Community College. It was previously known as the Kansas Cosmosphere. The museum houses over 13,000

spaceflight Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly objects, usually spacecraft, into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight is uncrewed and conducted mainly with spacecraft such ...

artifacts—the largest combined collection of US and Russian

artifacts in the world, and is home to various space educational programs.

Facilities

The Cosmosphere grew from a

planetarium A planetarium (: planetariums or planetaria) is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. A dominant feature of most planetariums is ...

established on the Kansas State Fairgrounds in 1962. The facility houses the largest collection of Russian space artifacts outside of

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

, and a collection of US space artifacts second only to the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

The Cosmosphere has five venues: the Hall of Space Museum, the Justice Planetarium, the Carey Digital Dome Theater, Dr. Goddard's Lab (an explosive live science presentation on the history of rocketry) and CosmoKids, an interactive STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) area. The Cosmosphere also hosts summer camps for all ages, and co-curricular applied STEAM education programs for field trips, groups, and scouts that meet Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core, focused on college and career readiness. The Cosmosphere is the only Smithsonian affiliate museum in Kansas. In 2012, the Carey Digital Dome Theater upgraded from

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...

to 4K digital projection system. In 2015, the Justice Planetarium underwent a complete renovation, transitioning from an optical starball projection system to the Spitz Sci-Dome XD digital projection system. In 2021, three of the museum's oldest galleries began renovations: the German Gallery, the Redstone and Sputnik Gallery, and the Kennedy Theater. These galleries opened during the late 1990s. They will be repainted, and their exhibits will receive new graphics and new sound.

Restoration and replication

The Cosmosphere's SpaceWorks division has restored flown U.S. spacecraft for museums and exhibits across the globe, including artifacts that are part of the collection of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. Two examples of this work are the

Apollo 13 Apollo 13 (April 1117, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo program, Apollo space program and would have been the third Moon landing. The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the landing was abort ...

Command Module ''Odyssey'', and the '' Liberty Bell 7'' – both on display at the Cosmosphere. The Cosmosphere built roughly 80% of the artifacts and props for the movie ''

'' and of the replicated spacecraft hardware seen in '' Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D''; and the TV mini-series ''

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' () is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil War society of weapons enthusiasts, and their attempts to build an en ...

.''

Collection

Kansas Cosmosphere Right Stuff Glamorous Glennis Replica 2013

Flown items included in the Cosmosphere's collection are a

Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird The Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" is a retired long-range, high-altitude, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed and manufactured by the American aerospace company Lockheed Corporation. Its nicknames include " Blackbird" and ...

, the ''Liberty Bell 7'' Mercury spacecraft, the

Gemini 10 Gemini 10 (officially Gemini X) With Gemini IV, NASA changed to Roman numerals for Gemini mission designations. was a 1966 crewed spaceflight in NASA's Gemini program. It was the 8th crewed Project Gemini, Gemini flight, the 16th crewed American ...

space capsule, and the Command Module ''Odyssey'' from

. Additionally, authentic Redstone and

Titan II The Titan II was an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company from the earlier Titan I missile. Titan II was originally designed and used as an ICBM, but was later adapted as a medium-lift space ...

launch vehicles used in the Mercury and Gemini programs flank the building's exterior. A prized item on display is a

Moon rock Moon rock or lunar rock is rock originating from Earth's Moon. This includes lunar material collected during the course of human exploration of the Moon, and rock that has been ejected naturally from the Moon's surface and landed on Earth ...

from

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...

, the first crewed mission to land on the Moon. Every artifact on display at the Cosmosphere is either an actual flown artifact, a "flight-ready backup" (identical to the item actually flown), an engineering model, or a historically accurate replica. The Cosmosphere museum begins with the earliest experiments in rocketry during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

era, explores through the

Space Race The Space Race (, ) was a 20th-century competition between the Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between t ...

and

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

, and continues through modern times with the

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...

and

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...

, as well as

SpaceShipOne SpaceShipOne is an experimental air launch, air-launched rocket-powered aircraft with sub-orbital spaceflight capability at speeds of up to / using a hybrid rocket motor. The design features a unique "Feathering (reentry), feathering" atmosph ...

and commercial spaceflight. Subset of notable items on display:

Germany

:;World War II era :*

V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb ( "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Reich Aviation Ministry () name was Fieseler Fi 103 and its suggestive name was (hellhound). It was also known to the Allies as the buzz bomb or doodlebug a ...

missile (authentic, restored) :*

V-2 rocket The V2 (), with the technical name ''Aggregat (rocket family), Aggregat-4'' (A4), was the world's first long-range missile guidance, guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the S ...

(authentic, restored) :* Walter HWK 109-509 rocket engine from a

Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet is a rocket-powered interceptor aircraft primarily designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt. It is the only operational rocket-powered fighter aircraft in history as well as ...

:;Cold War era :* Section of the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...

– last section removed (authentic)

Russia / Soviet Union / USSR

:;Early satellites :*

Sputnik 1 Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), sometimes referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program ...

(flight-ready backup) :*

Sputnik 2 Sputnik 2 (, , ''Satellite 2'', or Prosteyshiy Sputnik 2 (PS-2, , ''Simplest Satellite 2'', launched on 3 November 1957, was the second spacecraft launched into Earth orbit, and the first to carry an animal into orbit, a Soviet space dog named ...

(engineering model) :;Early space programs :* Vostok space capsule (competitor against Mercury program) :* Voskhod 2 space capsule (competitor against the Gemini program) :;Space program joint venture with the United States :* Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Craft (full-scale replica) :;Various space articles :* Prototype and flown Russian

space suit A space suit (or spacesuit) is an environmental suit used for protection from the harsh environment of outer space, mainly from its vacuum as a highly specialized pressure suit, but also its temperature extremes, as well as radiation and ...

s :* RD-107 engine, used on the Soyuz rocket

United States

:;Winged aircraft :*

reconnaissance plane (flown) :*

Northrop T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet Supersonic aircraft, supersonic jet trainer designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Northrop Corporation. It was the world's first supersonic trainer as well as the most produced. ...

supersonic jet trainer in

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

livery (flown) :* XLR11 and XLR99 rocket engines from the

North American X-15 The North American X-15 is a Hypersonic speed, hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft which was operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the List of X-planes, X-plane series of ...

program (flown) :* Replica of the

Bell X-1 The Bell X-1 (Bell Model 44) is a rocket engine–powered aircraft, designated originally as the XS-1, and was a joint National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics– U.S. Army Air Forces– U.S. Air Force supersonic research project built by B ...

''Glamorous Glennis'', used in the filming of '' The Right Stuff'' movie :* Engine from

''Glamorous Glennis'', pilot

Chuck Yeager Brigadier general (United States), Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager ( , February 13, 1923December 7, 2020) was a United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot who in October 1947 became the first pilot in his ...

(flown) :;Early satellites :*

Explorer 1 Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States in 1958 and was part of the U.S. participation in the International Geophysical Year (IGY). The mission followed the first two satellites, both launched by the Soviet Union duri ...

satellite (replica) :*

Vanguard 1 Vanguard 1 (Harvard designation: 1958-Beta 2, COSPAR ID: 1958-002B ) is an American satellite that was the fourth artificial Earth-orbiting satellite to be successfully launched, following Sputnik 1 Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), ...

satellite (flight-ready backup) :; Mercury space program :* '' Liberty Bell 7'' Mercury spacecraft, recovered from the bottom of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

. It is the only spacecraft flown by NASA but owned by an entity other than

or the Smithsonian (owned by Cosmosphere). :* Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle rocket (authentic, standing vertical outdoors) :; Gemini space program :*

space capsule (flown) :*

Agena target vehicle The Agena Target Vehicle (; ATV), also known as Gemini-Agena Target Vehicle (GATV), was an uncrewed spacecraft used by NASA during its Gemini program to develop and practice orbital space rendezvous and docking techniques, and to perform large ...

docking collar (authentic) :*

rocket used in the Gemini program (authentic, standing vertically outdoors) :;

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

space program :*

command module ''Odyssey'' (flown) :*

Lunar Roving Vehicle The Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) is a Battery electric vehicle, battery-powered four-wheeled Rover (space exploration), rover used on the Moon in the last three missions of the American Apollo program (Apollo 15, 15, Apollo 16, 16, and Apollo 17 ...

(full-scale replica) :*

Lunar Module The Apollo Lunar Module (LM ), originally designated the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), was the lunar lander spacecraft that was flown between lunar orbit and the Moon's surface during the United States' Apollo program. It was the first crewed s ...

and surface experiment suite (full-scale replica) :* Apollo White Room (authentic) :* Moon rock collected during

:* Multiple cameras and items carried on Apollo flights (flown) :*

Rocketdyne F-1 The F-1 is a rocket engine developed by Rocketdyne. The engine uses a gas-generator cycle developed in the United States in the late 1950s and was used in the Saturn V rocket in the 1960s and early 1970s. Five F-1 engines were used in the S ...

engine components recovered from the ocean (flown), unused engine outdoors :;

space program :* Full-scale replica of Space Shuttle ''Endeavour'' (left side only) :* Piece of tile from the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster (flown) :;Various space articles :* Prototype and flown American

s :*

RL10 The RL10 is a liquid-fuel cryogenic rocket engine built in the United States by Aerojet Rocketdyne that burns cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants. Modern versions produce up to of thrust per engine in vacuum. RL10 version ...

, H-1, F-1, Merlin 1D rocket engines

Controversy

In November 2003, the Cosmosphere released a statement indicating that a routine audit had revealed many missing items from the museum. Over a year later, in April 2005, former Cosmosphere director Max Ary was charged with stealing artifacts from the museum's collection and selling the pieces for personal profit. Some of the missing items included a nose cone, silk screens, boot covers, nuts and bolts, an

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control-designated Aviation call signs, call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. The term is commonly used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modifie ...

control panel, and a tape of the

Apollo 15 Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the Apollo program and the fourth Moon landing. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a longer stay on the Moon and a greate ...

landing which Ary sold for $2,200. Additional charges involved the theft of dozens more artifacts from the Cosmosphere when he left in 2002 and false insurance claims made regarding the loss of an astronaut's Omega watch replica. Ary also failed to notify NASA of the watch's loss. Ary went on trial in 2005. He testified that the artifacts he sold were from his private collection, which he had accumulated through undocumented trades and salvage of unwanted items. He also stated he had received numerous personal gifts from astronauts. Some of the items in question were supposedly brought with him from the Noble Planetarium in 1976 and incorporated into the Cosmosphere's permanent collection, and in many cases, ownership of artifacts could not be proved on Ary's behalf or the Cosmosphere's. Ary was found guilty on 12 counts. On May 15, 2006, he was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $132,000. In 2008, he lost his appeal and began to serve his sentence in a federal prison in

El Reno, Oklahoma El Reno is a city in and the county seat of Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 16,989, marking a change of 1.55% from 16,729, recorded in the 2010 census. The city was begun shortly after ...

on April 24, 2008.Green, John (May 5, 2008) "Ruling on Ary stands" ''hutchnews.com'' Ary has repeatedly proclaimed his innocence. He was released on good behavior in June 2010.

References

External links

*
Cosmosphere info and photos
kansastravel.org {{Authority control 1962 establishments in Kansas Aerospace museums in Kansas Hutchinson, Kansas Museums in Reno County, Kansas Museums established in 1962 Planetaria in the United States Smithsonian Institution affiliates