Linda Shiner

Linda Shiner is the editor of Air & Space.

The tinfoil-covered vial at right holds about four grams of an asteroid brought to Earth from deep space. It may also hold the key to how life began here. The vial at left holds ground-up quartz that will act as a control in chemical investigations.

Inside Scientists’ Quest to Find the Secrets of Life in Four Grams of Asteroid Dust

NASA researchers are scrutinizing rocks and dirt brought to Earth from the asteroid Bennu

An artist’s rendering of the Bell NEXUS on display in the Smithsonian Arts & Industries Building on the National Mall.

The Air Taxi Arrives at the Smithsonian

The company that gave us the first supersonic airplane and the V-22 Osprey presents something new.

John Glenn’s crisp white shirt is sharp against a soft-focus control center. He’s watching the unpiloted Mercury-Atlas 4 flight in September 1961, just months before he would climb aboard the Friendship 7 spacecraft and ride an Atlas rocket on the same profile to orbit.

NASA’s First Photographer

Bill Taub created an intimate historical record of the first Americans in space.

Among the veterans' stories archived at the Library of Congress are narratives of flying “the Hump” in World War II. The Curtiss C-46 Commando was a mainstay for those operations, conducted over the Himalayan foothills where there was no emergency landing strip.

Flying the Hump: A Veteran Remembers

One of many stories in the Library of Congress searchable archive of war reminiscences.

Standing by his Cessna 172S, Barry Eccleston signals success on August 22, 2019, the day he earned his instrument flight rating.

A CEO Rediscovers the Joy of Flying

The recently retired head of Airbus Americas is learning to be a pilot—again.

Waco vermillion with a gold-edged black stripe and silver wings: The airplane Chris Galloway flew in California last October wears the colors it did when Continental pilots flew it in Detroit in 1931.

Meet <i>Betsy, Air & Space</i> Magazine’s Airplane of the Year

We tallied the votes from our online poll and on-site ballots, and this restored 1931 Waco is the winner.

Last March, Don Long (left) shook hands with Pat Patteson at the Travis Air Force Base airshow in California. The World War II veterans both had experiences in PBY Catalinas in the Pacific and flew PV-1 Venturas but didn’t cross paths until at the show they visited another airplane they both flew, Taigh Ramey’s PV-2 Harpoon. Ken Terpstra, a volunteer at the Stockton Field Aviation Museum was delighted to see the encounter.

These World War II Pilots Will Ride to Reno in the Same Type of Navy Bomber They Flew 75 Years Ago

Their stories may be even better than the vintage PV-2 Harpoon they’ll be flying.

Pilots of all ages fly models of all types at Academy of Model Aeronautics clubs. The Academy also awards academic scholarships to graduating seniors who have been AMA members for three years. Among the pilots who got their start in model aviation: Neil Armstrong.

A Career Built on Flying Models

RJ Gritter of Aurora Flight Sciences explains why he loves his job.

In 2011, smoke on and flying for the fun of it, David Martin climbs out over Possum Kingdom Lake, in his CAP 232.

This Record-Setting Pilot Flew 1,826 Days in a Row

Airshow star David Martin always wondered what it would be like to fly every day.

Before the Gemini astronauts practiced rendezvous and docking in space, they rehearsed in the Rendezvous Docking Simulator at the Langley Research Center. In this multiple exposure, a mock-up of the Gemini craft, supported in a gimbal system by an overhead crane, approaches the Agena target.

Giant Steps to the Moon

Milestones on a perilously complex journey.

When Connor Duchen graduated from Purdue, he wanted a memento of a favorite college moment: flying the university’s Embraer Phenom 100 jet. Today he helps airlines choose jets for their fleets.

The Business of Aviation

Connor Duchen, Analyst, SkyWorks Capital, talks about data and deals.

Four different versions of the Apollo coins are offered; sales will raise money for the National Air and Space Museum's "Destination Moon" exhibit and for the Astronauts Memorial Foundation and the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation.

Commemorative Coin Throws a Curve at Apollo History

The U.S. Mint marks the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing.

Cecilia Skroder (on the left, pictured with a classmate, lower step) used her 2016 ISTAT Foundation scholarship toward an MBA from the Toulouse Business School, France. One grant supported the no-fee school program in aviation and science at New York’s Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.

Aviation's Social Network

The foundation that helps young people become players in ‘the sporty game.’

Rare souvenir: Sold in 1936, this ping-pong ball flew across the Atlantic—twice—with Dick Merrill.

The Ping-Pong Flight

Only two of the 41,000 balls dropped in 1936 have—so far—shown up.

Darryl Greenamyer in his customized Lancair.

The Sultan of Speed

Remembering the irrepressible Darryl Greenamyer (1936-2018).

Even if your team is not the $20,000 national prize winner, rockets can be fun.

Champions of the World

With 56 test launches, a Georgia high school team had the data to win big.

On June 24, 1981, Ronald Reagan was the presidential passenger on the VC-137 taking off from Kelly Air Force Base, San Antonio. Now on display in the Reagan library, the aircraft flew seven presidents.

When Air Force One Evaded MiG Fighters

One can only imagine what the MiG pilots thought.

Museum specialist Chris Reddersen, holding a Spirit of St. Louis model that he and his dad built while Reddersen was in elementary school, got to work on the real thing as a volunteer at the National Air and Space Museum.

Hands on History

As a restoration specialist at the National Air and Space Museum, Chris Redderson gets to work on some of the world’s most famous airplanes.

The deep blue egg is an ancient impact crater; court markings are overlaid on the photo to show dimensions.

After the Game, Roll Out a Planet

A heavy-duty vinyl map the size of a basketball court.

Jack Dailey in his early days as a Marine aviator.

The Kid in the Corsair Cockpit

Jack Dailey looks back on his flying career.

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