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: Ironically, the artifact that gave it its start is absent a half-century later. The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum turned 50 on Wednesday (July 1) with five renovated galleries awaiting visitors. One object not on display, though (or at least not identified as such) is the Viking lander surface sampler that received a signal from Mars and cut the museum's opening ribbon. For the anniversary, a tale about a 50-year-old arm.