363-foot rocket to be projected onto the Washington Monument this week

The east face of the Washington Monument will look astronomically different between 9:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, a 363-foot, life-sized rocket will be projected onto the obelisk, according to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum. The display will depict a Saturn V model, the same kind that launched the Apollo 11 lunar spacecraft carrying the crew of Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins to outer space on July 16, 1969.

The museum is shepherding the projection in partnership with the U.S. Interior Department and London-based design firm 59 Productions, which was behind the visuals for the summer 2012 Olympic Games’ opening ceremony. On July 19 and July 20, a 17-minute show will take place at the monument, recreating Apollo 11’s launch and landing, in part through archival footage. People can view the show from the National Mall and near the Smithsonian Castle, from 9th to 12th streets NW, beginning at 9:30 p.m., 10:30 p.m., and 11:30 p.m. both days.

“The viewing area will be outfitted with full sound, projection screens and a 40-foot-wide recreation of the famous Kennedy Space Center countdown clock,” the museum notes in a release. Boeing and Raytheon are supporting the event, called “Apollo 50: Go for the Moon.”

“It took 400,000 people from across the 50 states to make Apollo a reality,” Ellen Stofan, the director of the museum, points out in a statement. “This program celebrates them, and we hope it inspires generations too young to have experienced Apollo firsthand to define their own moonshot.” Congress has sanctioned the program with a unanimous, joint resolution.

The 555-foot Washington Monument has been shuttered for elevator repairs and security updates since 2016, but is poised to re-open in August, the National Park Service has said.

Update, July 17:

Here are a few photos of what the rocket projection on the monument looked like Tuesday: