Indianapolis ASM Chapter visits Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering by Indianapolis Chapter March 9, 2009
The Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering was recently dedicated at Purdue University with at least 16 of its astronaut alumni on hand. "Purdue engineering has long been a place for imaginations to soar," said Purdue President France A. Córdova. "Just as alumnus Neil Armstrong's historic walk on the moon inspired countless young people - including me - this building that bears his name will inspire a new generation to reach for the stars."
Neil Armstrong Hall, located at Stadium and Northwestern avenues, houses the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, School of Materials Engineering, Department of Engineering Education, and several engineering programs, including the Minority Engineering Program, Women in Engineering Program and Engineering Projects in Community Service, or EPICS.
The building's distinctive winglike roof extensions are part of a design that mimics the appearance of an aircraft to symbolize Purdue's contributions to flight and the space program. One of the wings, sheathed in metallic panels, hangs over the entrance and a sculpture of Armstrong. A bronze sculpture of Armstrong, sits on a stone plinth in front of the building. Leading to the building are lunar footprints, made using a moon boot provided by the Simthsonian Air and Space Museum.
Walkways inside the building look down on an expansive atrium, which has a 53-foot-high ceiling. Hanging in the atrium will be a replica of the Apollo 1 command module identical to the one in which Roger Chaffee, Virgil "Gus" Grissom and Ed White died in 1967. The replica is being loaned to Purdue by the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center. Also in the atrium is a display of a lunar sample collected during the Apollo 17 mission commanded by Eugene Cernan, a Purdue alumnus and the last astronaut to walk on the moon. The sample, on loan from NASA, was provided by Chaffee's widow, Martha Chafee.
