Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Columbia Stowage Map

A photograph taken inside the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia shows a map of stowage locations.
Michael Collins' Inscription inside Apollo 11 Command Module "Columbia"

Following splashdown,while en route to Hawaii on the USS Hornet, Michael Collins crawled back into the command module (it was connected to the mobile quarantine facility by an air-tight tunnel) and wrote this short note on one of the equipment bay panels. The inscription reads:
Spacecraft 107, alias Apollo 11, alias "Columbia."
The Best Ship to Come Down the Line.
God Bless Her.
Michael Collins, CMP
Excerpt from After Sputnik: 50 Years of the Space Age
Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

The Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia on display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

The Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia on display in the Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Apollo 11 Launch

On 16 July 1969, American astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, and Michael Collins lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., in the mammoth-sized Saturn V rocket on their way to the moon during the Apollo 11 mission. Cmdr. Armstrong and pilot Aldrin landed the spacecraft, Eagle, on the moon's Sea of Tranquillity. Apollo 11 booster stages were tested at Stennis Space Center.
Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

The Apollo 11 command module Columbia is displayed at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Apollo 11 Saturn V Launch

At 9:32 a.m. EDT, the swing arms move away and a plume of flame signals the liftoff of the Apollo 11 Saturn V space vehicle and astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A.

NASA GRIN #GPN-2000-000629
Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia on temporary cradle.
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11
Command Module, Apollo 11

Display Status:

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.

The Apollo 11 Command Module, "Columbia," was the living quarters for the three-person crew during most of the first manned lunar landing mission in July 1969. On July 16, 1969, Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins were launched from Cape Kennedy atop a Saturn V rocket. This Command Module, no. 107, manufactured by North American Rockwell, was one of three parts of the complete Apollo spacecraft. The other two parts were the Service Module and the Lunar Module, nicknamed "Eagle." The Service Module contained the main spacecraft propulsion system and consumables while the Lunar Module was the two-person craft used by Armstrong and Aldrin to descend to the Moon's surface on July 20. The Command Module is the only portion of the spacecraft to return to Earth.

It was physically transferred to the Smithsonian in 1971 following a NASA-sponsored tour of American cities. The Apollo CM Columbia has been designated a "Milestone of Flight" by the Museum.

Title

Command Module, Apollo 11

Data Source

National Air and Space Museum

Restrictions & Rights

Do not reproduce without permission from the Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum

Astronaut

Manufacturer

North American Rockwell

Credit Line

Transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Materials

Primary Materials: Aluminum alloy, Stainless steel, Titanium

Dimensions

Overall: 10 ft. 7 in. × 12 ft. 10 in., 9130lb. (322.6 × 391.2cm, 4141.3kg)
Support (Stand): 2035.7kg (4488lb.)

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National Air and Space Museum Collection

Country of Origin

United States of America

Type

SPACECRAFT-Manned

Inventory Number

A19700102000

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Moon Rock

The final leg of the Moon rock’s journey to Earth was aboard the command module America, similar to the Apollo 11 command module, Columbia.
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Lunar Module LM-2

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On each Apollo mission that landed humans on the Moon (11, 12, 14, 15, and 17), the Lunar module rendezvoused with a command module in lunar orbit.
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North American X-15

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Neil Armstrong, the first human to walk on the Moon, flew in Columbia as Commander of Apollo 11 and piloted the Museum's X-15.

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Columbia Stowage Map

Michael Collins' Inscription inside Apollo 11 Command Module "Columbia"

Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Apollo 11 Launch

Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Apollo 11 Saturn V Launch

Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Command Module, Apollo 11

Display Status:

Collection Item Summary:

Collection Item Long Description:

Title

Data Source

Restrictions & Rights

Astronaut

Manufacturer

Credit Line

Materials

Dimensions

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Country of Origin

Type

Inventory Number

Explore Object Connections

Moon Rock

Lunar Module LM-2

North American X-15

Explore the collection

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