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After attending the funeral for my uncle Rick Blattenberger at Arlington National
Cemetery (he was a decorated Army Ranger during the Vietnam
era), Melanie and I drove to the nearby Udvar-Hazy Center annex of the Smithsonian
National Air and Space Museum. It has been nearly two decades since we last visited
the NASM in Washington, D.C., so I do not know what it looks like now, but the UHC
is an incredibly densely packed collection of awesome artifacts from America's aerospace
endeavors.
Having another appointment meant only being able to spend about two hours there,
which is nowhere near enough time to even come close to taking in all there is to
offer. Other visitors must have thought I was a deranged lunatic because of my roaming
at a rapid pace, with my head continually rolling from trying to see everything,
jaw hanging down out of amazement, drool running down my cheek from a Pavlovian
response to the intellectual food all around me, and unintelligible sounds being
uttered as I quickly read informational placards half out loud.
These are the aircraft engines and rocket motors that were on display at the
time. Many more were there, of course. Someday, I hope to return and do a much more
thorough capturing of the items, and with a much better camera.
Allison V-1710-33 V-12 Engine
V-2 Rocket Turbopump
 Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. R-985-AN-14B
<Wasp Jr video>
Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp
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Allison T56-A1
Wright Cyclone Radial Engine
Wright Cyclone GR-3350
V-2 Rocket Combustion Chamber
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 Packard Merlin V-1650-7 Engine
Le Rhone Model J Radial Engine
Goddard Rocket Components
H-1 Rocket Engine
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Posted February 23, 2014
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