Smithsonian Voices

From the Smithsonian Museums

Hillary Brady

Hillary Brady writes and edits stories for the Museum’s website and other digital platforms and projects. She has experience working in the outreach and digital spaces for museums, archives, and non-profit organizations. Hillary holds a BA in journalism and English from the University of Rhode Island and a MA in public humanities from Brown University.

Backup spacecraft for Telstar, the world's first active communications satellite. Telstar 1 began an era of live international television. After its launch on July 10, 1962, it relayed television images between the United States and France and England.

That’s no moon. (It's also not the Death Star.)

That’s no Moon, it’s a space station—or, rather, a satellite. With its spherical shape and piecemeal construction, it’s easy to see similarities between the Telstar satellite on display at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and the infamous Death Star of the Star Wars films. Aside from a passing resemblance in design, both pieces of technology also address a larger question that has been a focal point for humankind in reality and fantasy: what does space mean for humanity?

T’Challa’s Royal Talon Fighter flying above Wakanda in the film Black Panther. Credit: Marvel Studios.

How Wakanda’s Talon Fighter Compares to Real World Aviation

The Sonic Wind 1 rocket sled, which was powered by nine solid fuel rockets with 40,000 pounds total thrust for five seconds. Credit: Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum

Record-Breaking Rocket Sled Created Modern Safety Standards

NASA astronaut Alvin Drew, mission specialist. Credit: NASA Johnson Space Center

Astronaut Alvin Drew on the Final Days of Discovery

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