Sneak peek: "Beyond Planet Earth" at AMNH
Wed Nov 16 2011
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Photograph: Denis Finnin
Goodyear Lunar Spring Tire
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Photograph: D. Finnin/AMNH
Astronaut's Gold Visor
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Photograph: D. Finnin/AMNH
From Earth to the Moon
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Photograph: D. Finnin/AMNH
Future space capsule
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Photograph: Roderick MIckens/AMNH
Vostok capsule
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Photo:Roderick Mickens/AMNH
Sputnik
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Photograph: Craig Chesek/AMNH
Russian Space Training Helmet, c. 1969 for Beyond Planet Earth Exhibit.#...
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Mars rover
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Photograph: Roderick MIckens/AMNH
Hubble Telescope
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Virgin Galactic Spaceplane
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Liquid mirror telescope
Lunar elevator
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Bigelow moon habitat
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Liquid mirror telescope
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Hayabusa craft
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Knowles meteorite
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Mars meteorite
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Roderick MIckens
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
BioSuit
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Take Your Picture in a BioSuit
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Terraforming Interactive Table
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Photograph: Denis Finnin/AMNH
Underwater robot
"There's nothing in physics that prevents us from accomplishing these scenarios," said American Museum of Natural History curator Michael Shara of the science-fiction--worthy installations in the institution's newest exhibition, "Beyond Planet Earth." The show features histories of space exploration programs around the world, but more impressively, explores what could happen in the future. The ideas that scientists are working to bring to fruition include a space elevator, a portable fabric shelter that can house people on the moon and a streamlined Mars spacesuit designed by MIT's Dava Newman. Those displays are next to others depicting past and current astrophysics technology, like a replica Mars Rovers and pieces of meteors. A diorama of the Hubble Telescope is so accurate, NASA astronaut Michael Massimino, who actually worked on fixing it, broke museum rules to climb over a guardrail and inspect its details—he was stopped by officials before he touched the display.
The exhibition opens to the public on Saturday 19. Take note, iPhone and iPad owners: You can download a free app that provides additional videos and explanations at several points throughout the show. Before you blast off to the museum, check out some of the out-of-this-world items in our slide show.
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