Volandia, the museum dedicated to the history of flight in a step from the airport of Malpensa, in the weekend of May 28 and 29 proposes a very special event, dedicated to the Moon, the silver star that from the Greeks to the present day did to dream and inspire writers, poets and actors.
In fact, in the Museum Park will be on display in hall space - Planetarium, a fragment of the Moon, as part of the traveling show "I bring you the Moon", which since April 2 leads around Italy in seventy stages an authentic sample from lunar soil, until June 10, when the rock will return to Houston, in the US, where the NASA control center with lunar samples collected by Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972.
The fragment exposed to Volandia Moon weighs less than 146 grams and is one of the largest among those that NASA has allowed them to be exposed.
Its age dates back 3.9 billion years old and the oldest of 99.99% between all terrestrial rocks found on the surface of the celestial body.
Astronauts have chosen and picked up this fragment on the moon in February 1971, to 300 meters from where was the place of landing, during the last lunar mission, Apollo 14, which closed the cycle started in 1969 with the arrival of Armstrong and Aldrin on the Moon, first time in human history.
Now, if this remarkable specimen of the Moon can be visited in Hall of Space and Museum of Flight Park, it is largely through the efforts of Luigi Pizzimenti, curator of the Pavilion of Volandia Space, accredited by the Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility at NASA.
In fact, it was he himself who travel to Houston to personally pick up the moon rock whose value is really invaluable, especially if we divide the cost of the Apollo missions, which is about $ 170 billion today, for 382 kilograms of lunar samples returned to Earth, it is understood that this sample has theoretically worth about $70 million.
But really this unique opportunity has been made possible thanks to American Airlines, the largest airline in the world, with as many as 6,700 flights per day globally, which, as the sole sponsor of the initiative, has provided tickets to the journey from Malpensa to Houston Pizzamenti.
To celebrate the occasion, it will also open the capsule Casper, perfect reproduction of the Apollo 16 command module, full instrumentation with control panels and on-board computer, where you can climb like a real space mission, at a cost of 2 euro for children and 3 euro for more than 12 years.
Also Sunday, May 29 at 16.30 there will be the conference "I bring you the Moon" by Luigi Pizzimenti, the curator of the Pavilion of Volandia Area.
To participate in the conference it is advisable to book by writing to booking@volandia.it
original article by: Paola Montonati
photo by: Full Discografias