Splashdown 2009 To Showcase Recovery Ship For Apollo 11 And Apollo 12 Missions

The USS Hornet Museum is commemorating the 40th anniversary of its historic, safe recovery of Apollo 11 with Splashdown 2009, a three-day festival taking place on the aircraft carrier, which is anchored at Alameda Point on San Francisco Bay. From July 24 - 26, the public is invited to ship tours, special interactive exhibits, a display of actual moon rocks, and opportunities to meet NASA representatives and former USS Hornet crew. Visitors can literally step where the astronauts first set foot on Earth after walking on the Moon.

On Saturday, July 25th, the featured guest will be former astronaut, Buzz Aldrin, Lunar Module Pilot for Apollo 11 and the second man to walk on the moon.

"The USS Hornet is the largest existing artifact from the first two missions to land men on the moon, which are a significant benchmark in the history of humankind," said Pete Sutherland, Chief Operating Officer and Director of Education of the USS Hornet Museum.

The USS Hornet Museum is also home to the largest collection of Apollo mission artifacts on the West Coast. Permanent exhibits onboard include an Apollo Capsule used to test the heat shield design prior to the Apollo 11 mission, the HS-4 "Helo 66" type recovery helicopter used in the movie "Apollo 13," and the open-for-viewing Mobile Quarantine Facility used by Apollo 14 to isolate any potential "moon germs."

The USS Hornet is a World War II era aircraft carrier that fought in nine major battles, and was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. She served throughout the Cold War in the Pacific, including three tours of duty off the coast of Vietnam. In 1969 she recovered the first two lunar landing flights -- Apollo 11 and Apollo 12. As a result of her unique role in two of the most momentous occasions in world history, Hornet became a National Historic Landmark in 1994 and was opened to the public as a museum in 1998 at Alameda Point.

FMI: http://www.uss-hornet.org/