— In a subtle, and very likely unintended way, the scene depicted on Texas' American Innovation coin is a testament to its subject: Mission Control.

The golden dollar being issued by the United States Mint on Tuesday (July 29) does not show the iconic rows of screens, buttons and switches, nor does it have stereotypical Apollo-era flight controllers wearing button-down shirts, thin ties and thick-rimmed glasses (or, for that matter, their less uniform and more diverse modern-day counterparts). Nothing about the design evokes the iconography associated with the Houston center that has supported every NASA astronaut in space since moving to Texas in 1965.

Instead, the coin's tails side features an astronaut conducting a spacewalk outside the International Space Station.

The mint's description of the dollar attributes the design to the "the culmination of the Mission Control Center's economic, logistical and intellectual support for NASA's human space program," as well as the support it gives to crew members "from the many countries that participate in the International Space Station program." That may have been the intent, but it is hard to see without knowing the wider context.

What is clear, at least to those familiar with the topic, is that the astronaut is far off the structure and is not tethered. In other words, it is a "Houston, we've had a problem" moment.

"The featured design of an American astronaut with the International Space Station in the background truly commemorates Texas' critical role in the space program," said Texas Governor Greg Abbott in a statement released by the U.S. Mint. "We're proud that this coin captures the spirit of innovation and exploration that reflects Texas' pioneering roots."

In the process of developing the dollar, the mint's artists sketched concepts that showed the inside of a mission operations control room or focused on one of its consoles. The panels that were convened to review the designs either favored those that depicted Mission Control or requested for more ideas to be submitted.

Given the opportunity, Abbott did not identify a preferred design.

The decision was ultimately made by Scott Bessent, Secretary of the Treasury, and he went with the spacewalk at the ISS. The artwork was created by Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) designer Ron Sanders and sculpted by John McGraw, a medallic artist with the mint.

"This coin recognizes Texas' vital role in advancing America's leadership in space exploration. From guiding astronauts from Mission Control to shaping the future of science and technology, Texas has been at the heart of some of our nation's greatest space achievements," said Kristie McNally, acting director of the mint.

The heads side is the same on all of the coins in the American Innovation series: a representation of the Statue of Liberty with a privy mark (symbol) of a stylized gear to represent industry and innovation.

Sales of the Mission Control coins begin at noon EDT (1600 GMT) on Tuesday on the mint's website. Rolls of 25 coins struck at either the mint's Philadelphia ("P") or Denver ("D") facilities, are priced at $36.25 each, while a bag of 100 coins from either mint location runs $123.50. There is a limit of 10 of each roll or bag of coins per household order.

In total, the mint is offering 9,100 rolls of the Philadelphia-struck coins; 8,050 rolls of Denver-struck coins; 3,650 bags of coins from Philadelphia; and 3,450 bags of coins from Denver.

In addition to their availability from the mint's website, the Mission Control coin rolls and bags are also for sale through the mint's sales centers at the Philadelphia and Denver mints and from the mint's headquarters coin store in Washington, D.C.

The mint is not introducing the American Innovation dollars into circulation, though the coins are legal tender.

Introduced in 2018, the American Innovation $1 Coin program has included four previous space-themed subjects. In 2019, Delaware celebrated astronomer Annie Jump Cannon, who invented a system for classifying the stars that is still in use today. A year later, the mint released Maryland's coin, which honored the Hubble Space Telescope.

In 2024, the mint released Alabama's coin depicting the Saturn V rocket, which flew the first astronauts to the moon, and in May of this year, Florida's coin was for the space shuttle, which launched and often landed in the "Sunshine State."