The exhibit “Columbia: 15 Years After” opened Thursday, February 1, on the anniversary of the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
Personal memorabilia from crew members Willie McCool and Rick Husband was included in the exhibit.
Items on display were loaned from the Texas Tech University Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library as well as the families of the two men, said Briana Vela, marketing and special events coordinator.
The exhibit memorializes the Columbia Space Shuttle Program and what it meant for NASA, said Vela.
“We hope people are inspired to continue the legacy of pilot training and becoming astronauts and make sure space experiments and knowledge keeps going,” she said.
The exhibit was installed to extend the mission of the Silent Wings Museum, which commemorates the history of the World War II military glider program.
“We want to tie that into what the Silent Wings Museum is about honoring pilots in general,” she said.
The exhibit will be on display until June 17, 2018, in the timeline gallery at the Silent Wings Museum.
Funding for the exhibit was provided by the Helen Jones Foundation, according to a Texas Tech news release.
For more information on admission or to schedule a tour, visit silentwingsmuseum.com or call 806-775-3049.
