Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum to open new galleries, IMAX theater spring 2025

At Home in Space exhibition — The “At Home in Space” exhibition shows human spaceflight and future possibilities. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight gallery — The “Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight” gallery will open in 2025. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall exhibit — The “Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall” exhibit will have the Apollo Lunar Module LM-2. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

The Flight and the Arts Center. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

Futures in Space gallery — The “Futures in Space” gallery will go into how advances in space exploration technology and enterprise will impact the future of space. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

How Things Fly exhibit — The “How Things Fly” exhibit is focused on hands-on learning. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air exhibit — The “Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air” exhibit shows the wartime revolution in technology in military aviation. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

The Modern Military Aviation gallery shows developments in aviation technology. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe exhibit — The “National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe” exhibit has lenses at center to augment the starry sky and the Bruce Telescope. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

RTX Living in the Space Age exhibit — The “RTX Living in the Space Age” exhibit shows how innovations in space technology changed lives. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

World War I: The Birth of Military Aviation exhibit — The “World War I: The Birth of Military Aviation” exhibit reveals how wartime investments in aviation sped up the pace of development in aircraft design, performance and technology. (Courtesy National Air and Space Museum)

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The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum is moving into the final stages of multiyear renovations which includes opening up new galleries and an IMAX theater in spring 2025.

Construction began in 2018 and the museum is currently open to the public amid the staged renovations. On Tuesday, the museum revealed new details about the 12 galleries and exhibits that are expected to open by July 2026 — just in time for its 50th anniversary.

The exhibits and galleries included in the final stage of renovations:

“At Home in Space”
“Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight”
“Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall”
Allan and Shelley Holt Innovations Gallery
“Futures in Space”
Flight and the Arts Center
“Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air”
“Modern Military Aviation”
“National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe”
“RTX Living in the Space Age”
“Textron How Things Fly”
“World War I: The Birth of Military Aviation”

The “Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight” and “Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall” galleries are expected to open in the spring of 2025, according to a news release. The Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater and the museum’s entrance on Jefferson Drive are also scheduled to open on that timeline.

The rest of the exhibits and galleries are expected to open by July 2026.

Construction of the museum is expected to be completed next year. Curators said the new exhibits will feature artifacts that the museum hasn’t displayed before.

The museum was closed to the public in March 2022 for massive renovations before reopening in October of that year with eight new exhibits in which visitors needed to reserve free timed-entry passes.

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