Best of the National Air and Space Museum [Hardcover]

CNExperience the thrill of flying some of the world's most important airplanes and spacecraft.Best of the National Air and Space Museumprovides unprecedented access to the most popular museum in the world. The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum hosts an average of seven million visits every year. The Udvar-Hazy Center—three football fields long and ten stories high—receives more than one million visits annually.Best of the National Air and Space Museumfeatures the best of both museums, from theChallengerspace shuttle and the Wright flyer to theSpirit of St. Louisand the stealth bomber. Robert Van der Linden, curator of aeronautics, has selected the most important, popular, and just plain impressive aircraft and spacecraft from the collections of both museums to be showcased in this beautiful book. Each page spread includes intriguing facts of the item's design, use, mission, specifications, and dimensions. A must-have for space and aviation buffs.F. ROBERT VAN DER LINDEN is the curator of special purpose aircraft and commercial aviation in the Smithsonian Institution National Air & Space Museum's Aeronautics Division. He is also the author ofThe Nation's Hangar: Aircraft Treasures of the Smithsonian.