Cover Page

Man in Space A National Historic Landmark Theme Study

INTRODUCTORY ESSAY (Phase II)

Mission Control during Soyuz mission

Phase II of the Man in Space National Historic Landmark Theme Study has been prepared for the Congress and the National Park System Advisory Board in partial fulfillment of the requirements of P.L. 96-344. The purpose of the Theme Study is to evaluate all resources which relate to the theme of Man in Space and to recommend certain of those resources for designation as National Historic Landmarks.

In Phase I of the Man in Space Theme Study 24 resources were discussed and recommended for designation as National Historic Landmarks. A discussion of these resources and their significance and role in the American Space Program can be found in Phase I of the Man in Space Theme Study. The role and function of resources contained in Phase II fit into the integrated outline of types of resources contained in Phase I. In addition to the 24 resources discussed previously, the following resources are believed to be nationally significant and are recommended for designation as National Historic Landmarks or recognition as nationally significant objects.

See list in the Table of Contents

Skylab

Additional objects at the Air and Space Museum were examined for inclusion in this study. Some, such as Mercury Spacecraft Freedom 7, Gemini 7, and the Skylab 4 Command Module were rejected because more significant examples were found in the museum. Other objects, such as the V-2 Missile, the Vanguard Rocket, the Bell X-1 Plane, and the Pioneer 10 Planetary Probe were rejected because they lacked integrity and, therefore, did not meet the criteria for designation as National Historic Landmarks and ought not to be recognized as a nationally significant historic objects. Additional objects such as the Jupiter-C Rocket, Lunar Module, Lunar Roving Vehicle, M2-F3 Lifting Body, X-15 Plane, Viking Mars Lander and the Voyager 1 Planetary Probe were rejected because either they did not meet the criteria for significance of the National Historic Landmark Program or there was insufficient information on the particular object in the collection to determine its integrity.

All photos used on this page courtesy of NASA.

Last Modified: Mon, Jan 8 2001 10:00:00 am PDT
man-in-space/space0b.htm