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Author
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Topic: [American Space] Space Memorabilia (Oct 2025)
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Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 55375
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-07-2025 11:01 AM
   
Bid Again Auctions' next sale benefiting the American Space Museum is now online on Invaluable and will have final bidding on Oct. 25, 2025, starting at 12 noon EDT.See the auction catalog. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-07-2025 11:48 AM
Lot 267. Yet another Silver Snoopy pin listed as flown. There is nothing in the accompanying provenance that certifies that fact. Buyer beware. |
SpaceAholic
Member Posts: 5520
From: Sierra Vista, Arizona
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-07-2025 12:18 PM
NASA stipulates otherwise. The award is a sterling silver Snoopy lapel pin that has flown in space, plus a certificate of appreciation and commendation letter for the employee, both signed by the astronaut. |
hbw60
Member Posts: 360
From:
Registered: Aug 2018
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posted 10-07-2025 03:10 PM
Lot 256 is purportedly signed by Christa McAuliffe. However, the item in question is a space catalog from 1993, many years after her death. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 55375
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-07-2025 03:32 PM
The cover art for Superior's Fall 1993 auction catalog was a reprint of an authentically signed photo by Christa McAuliffe that was offered as part of the sale. You can also see it on Amazon. quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAholic:
NASA stipulates otherwise.
NASA's description is of the award as it exists today. At some point during the space shuttle program, NASA began flying hundreds of Silver Snoopy pins on every mission, such that they could present flown examples to every recipient (though often with no connection between the mission the individual as being honored for and the mission on which the pin flew [and/or astronaut doing the presentation]). This particular presentation is from the shuttle-era but is not dated (or faded to the where the date is unreadable) so it is hard to make any conclusions about the flight status. |
Ken Havekotte
Member Posts: 4016
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 10-07-2025 03:40 PM
Why can't the catalog itself feature an actual signed shuttle launch photo on its cover? I did read the caption of Lot 256 and can understand the confusion, but I am sure it refers to an auction signed-photo lot as described, not the cover page of the actual print catalog itself. |
hbw60
Member Posts: 360
From:
Registered: Aug 2018
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posted 10-07-2025 04:12 PM
My confusion over Lot 256 is in the description. The title lists it as a "Christa McAuliffe Signed Catalogue." And this is the exact description on the page: This is a 1993 Space Memorabilia Auction Catalogue that has been hand signed and dedicated by Astronaut Christa McAulliffe, of the STS-51L fated mission, on the cover of the catalogue. She wrote 'May your future be limited only by your dreams' as an inspired dedication to 'Ron'. And that's not accurate. The catalog has not been signed. A more accurate description would be something like this: This is a 1993 Space Memorabilia Auction Catalogue, with the cover showcasing one of the available lots - a signed photo of Christa McAuliffe. The $800 estimate also implies this to be a genuine signature, when the catalog itself is $10 on Amazon. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-08-2025 05:56 AM
Thank you Scott for the pin detail from NASA.Has the flown status of the Snoopy pins been thus since the Apollo program, or a Shuttle era thing? Half of 1% during the Apollo program would equate to a couple of thousand flown pins per year and I would welcome evidence of such numbers providing greater clarity. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 55375
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-08-2025 08:48 AM
Browsing through the Official Flight Kit manifests under the Resources section, it seems prior to the Challenger tragedy, many of the space shuttle missions (though not all) carried 50 to 80 Silver Snoopy pins.Immediately after the accident, the quantities rose to as many as 732 pins (on STS-27) but then settle back to 40 to 100 through STS-36, and then rise again to as many as 560 with the deployment of the Hubble Space Telescope on STS-31. This pattern appears to repeat throughout the remainder of the program, ranging from under 100 to several hundred. After the Columbia tragedy, NASA had settled at flying 100 to 200 pins per flight through the end of the program. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-08-2025 09:50 AM
Thanks for the detail Robert. Very interesting. Is there similarly detailed evidence of Snoopy pins being flown on behalf of the agency during Apollo?Crew flown pins during Apollo number a little over 100 give or take. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 55375
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-08-2025 10:05 AM
I defer to Larry, but my understanding is that Apollo-era Silver Snoopy pins were carried in the PPKs, of which only Neil Armstrong's has been officially made public.Per the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project OFK and PPK manifests, there were no Silver Snoopys carried on the American side of the mission. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-08-2025 10:33 AM
Thanks Robert. |
Ken Havekotte
Member Posts: 4016
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 10-08-2025 12:19 PM
There are photos of awarded and flown Apollo 7 Snoopy pins that I am aware of. So it would appear that flown pins, though very limited than compared to shuttle flights, must be in the multi-thousands by now.
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Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-08-2025 05:22 PM
In totality Ken, you are likely correct. But Apollo flown pins... a handful at best, in my opinion. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 55375
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-08-2025 06:07 PM
This is from more than a decade ago, but this is what Larry (McGlynn) wrote at the time after interviewing the surviving astronauts and surveying the past auctions: I have come up with a count of 75 Snoopy pins carried on all Apollo missions from Apollo 7 to Apollo 17. There may be more pins because of the lack of information from Apollo 11 and Apollo 17, but if one was to interpolate the numbers carried based on the all the missions, then the number might jump to between 90 and 100 Snoopy pins in total flown on the Apollo missions. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-09-2025 04:47 AM
Thanks Robert. I have discussed Apollo flown Snoopy pins with Larry from time to time. Since your comments dated 10 years ago Larry has upped his estimate to 120-130. Fred Haise carried 30 of that number on Apollo 13. |
segopalm
Member Posts: 11
From: Sanger CA USA
Registered: Aug 2013
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posted 10-19-2025 02:37 PM
I've seen these Apollo 12 flown star decals before, the prices vary wildly and widely it seems. Some were listed as surface flown, really? |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4649
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 10-20-2025 06:41 AM
I have seen these listed elsewhere as flown, some years ago. But I suspect the gold star only made it to the moon: not the presentation cards themselves.... unless somebody knows different? |
Chuckster01
Member Posts: 1178
From: Orlando, FL
Registered: Jan 2014
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posted 10-20-2025 07:02 AM
It is my understanding that only the stars are flown to the moon. I have no idea about lunar landed. |
Ken Havekotte
Member Posts: 4016
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001
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posted 10-20-2025 08:56 AM
Yes, that's correct with only the gold star flown to the moon. I had a couple of these beforehand, but forgotten about their exact flown status rather in orbit or to the surface. I'll check on that and report back unless someone already has that answer. I believe more than a thousand or so gold (and maybe some silver) stars flew in lunar orbit. |
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