Narrator: Once upon a time, in a distant galaxy, the stars would twinkle and twirl in the sky. Keeping the galaxy in bright harmony with their light. But an ancient prophecy told of a time when the Harmony would be broken. The stars and planets would slow their dance and disappear, leaving a galaxy of darkness. Yet, there was hope, as the prophecy also foretold of one who could restore harmony to the stars. One with the heart of a leader. They don't have the helmets, they just are wearing the suits," said Weitekamp. "My understanding is that the shoes are adhered to their feet and, in fact, their hair has been gelled down with a little bit of glue to keep it from not just being a 'flyaway,' as in having a bad hair day, but literally flying away in the microgravity environment. After welcoming 1994’s Astronaut Barbie to Air and Space, the Museum went on a long Barbie-collecting hiatus that ended only recently with the addition of two dolls from 2021. Barbie, on the other hand, never rests. Between 2000 and 2020, seven total space-themed Barbie dolls were released. Most notably, Barbie did what no human has yet achieved and traveled to Mars! In 2013, Mars Explorer Barbie claimed the Red Planet for Barbieland. Clad in a white spacesuit with shimmery pink detailing, this doll perfectly blends the more realistic, practical styles of the 1960s and ‘90s with the hyperfeminine fashions of the 1980s. The first two Barbie dolls to fly in space, part of Mattel's "Space Discovery" line, are seen on display the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia, after spending several months aboard the International Space Station in 2022. (Smithsonian) The Space Discovery line, now for sale exclusively at Target, includes Barbie dolls identical dolls to those launched to the station, as well as dolls of Barbie's friends dressed in spacey outfits and related playsets.

Makes a great gift for ages 3 years old and up, especially those shooting for the stars, space and discovery! Barbie® Space Discovery™ Space Station Playset with Barbie® Space Explorer Doll, Workstation, Puppy, 20 Accessory Pieces, 3 to 7 Years Old By providing my child’s information, I certify that I am the parent or legal guardian of the child or that I have legal authority to submit the child’s information. World's smallest particle accelerator is 54 million times smaller than the Large Hadron Collider — and it works The Barbie dolls now in space are expected to return to Earth this summer, when they will be sent to the Smithsonian to go on display at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in northern Virginia. This box from 1994 Astronaut Barbie is in the Museum’s collection, along with the corresponding doll.

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It was on a DOD [Department of Defense] flight, and that's why you might not have seen much on it," said Steve Denison in an interview with collectSPACE. Two “Space Discovery” Barbies that flew to the International Space Station in 2022, on display at the Udvar-Hazy Center. Blast off to new worlds with the Barbie® Space Discovery™ Space Station playset and inspire imaginations!

Inspire imaginations to blast off to new worlds with the Barbie® Space Discovery™ Space Station playset. Launch play with the Barbie® space explorer doll, her puppy and more than 20 out-of-this-world pieces that inspire kids to explore and experiment! The set opens to reveal a workstation -- rotate the star pattern thumbwheel to switch between different space "scenes." Accessories include a chair, test tubes, microscope, plant experiment, laptop, astronaut food, plus items for the puppy like a puppy bed and food bowl. Doll cannot stand alone. Colors and decorations may vary. Makes a great gift for kids 3 to 7 years old. Programs Learning resources Plan a field trip Educator professional development Education monthly theme In 1998, Mattel released Space Camp Barbie (not in our collection), whose blue flight suit is much more in line with what actual astronauts were wearing during the 1990s. Based on popular Space Camp programs for children and teenagers, this doll was the first space-themed Barbie that wasn’t an astronaut. Unlike Astronaut Barbie, who represents a far-off future goal that children must wait to achieve until they are older, Space Camp Barbie represents a real and immediately attainable way for children to engage with and study space. 2000s and 2010s Over the past 57 years, Barbie's space wear has varied from fashion-forward to miniature replicas of the real thing. The first astronaut outfit, "Barbie Miss Astronaut" released in 1965, was inspired by the silverly suits worn by the Mercury astronauts. Twenty years later, Barbie modeled a bright pink and silver spacesuit "with sparkly skirt and tights." The pair of "Space Discovery" dolls that debuted July 18 at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia were indeed launched into orbit in 2022, and were the first Barbie dolls that Mattel — the toy company behind the iconic fashion figure brand — arranged to fly. But another Barbie made the trip 32 years earlier aboard a still-classified space shuttle mission and today it sits in the home of its original owner.The National Air and Space Museum on Tuesday (July 18) debuted on display the first-ever Barbie dolls to actually fly into space. The two fashion figures spent several months on board the International Space Station (ISS) in 2022 as part of "Mission DreamStar," a joint outreach project by Mattel and the ISS U.S. National Laboratory. The dolls were then donated by the toy company to the Smithsonian. The forgotten story of the real first Barbie to fly into space (on a still-secret mission) | collectSPACE Two of the iconic fashion dolls are now on board the International Space Station (ISS), where they are part of "Mission DreamStar," an outreach project to inspire girls to consider careers in aerospace and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. As revealed by Mattel on Thursday (April 14), the dolls have been in Earth orbit since February as part of a collaboration between the toy company and the ISS U.S. National Laboratory. Now, in the same week that Barbie is launching onto the silver screen in a new movie starring Margot Robbie as the title character, the flown dolls are having a premiere of their own. (The timing of the exhibit's debut was not tied to the film's release.)

The idea of a Barbie doll with two outfits – one for work and one for after work – was not unique to this doll. Mattel’s 1985 Day-to-Night Barbie was based around that exact concept. By day, this doll wore a pink blazer and pencil skirt and carried a pink briefcase. By night, she let her hair down (literally and metaphorically) and donned a sparkly pink evening gown. Two Space Discovery Barbies “tour” the Vegetable Production System (Veggie) on the ISS. ( Image credit: Mattel) As it happened, the same person who sewed Barbie's custom spacesuit went on to work for the National Archives, where in 1999 she helped arrange for the doll to be temporarily displayed at the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Kansas, in conjunction with an exhibit celebrating 40 years of Barbie. This is our first chance to have Barbie in a spacesuit that depicts a spacesuit that women have actually worn. This is a spacesuit that is based on the Russian Sokol suits," Weitekamp said. "So we are now able to show a nice array of the ways that Barbie has allowed people to connect with the idea of going into space and then what is actually happening in spaceflight right now." Since then, the doll has remained at Denison's home, which may be why Mattel, NASA, the Smithsonian and just about everyone else forgot about Barbie's actual first spaceflight. Not that Denison has any hard feelings about the subject.During this time, Mattel also released another iteration of Space Camp Barbie (2008) as well as two scientist dolls: Space Scientist Barbie (2017) and Astrophysicist Barbie (2019). Several space-themed dolls based on real women were also released, perhaps in an attempt to show young girls that their dreams aren’t only possible in Barbieland. Among these highlighted women are Katherine Johnson, a NASA mathematician who worked on the Mercury program; Sally Ride, the first American woman in space; and Samantha Cristoforetti, the first Italian woman in space. 2021: Space Discovery Barbie