Commems Collection Modern: What If? 2008 N A S A 50th Anniversary - 109th Congress

I'm splitting this story into three parts, because there are natural differentiating lines between the coin proposals introduced in the 108th vs. 109th Congresses vs. those of the 110th and 111th Congresses.

A Bit of History - Part II

Continuing the NACA-NASA story from the 108th Congress story...

As noted previously, World War I was a catalyst for the US focus on aeronautical technology. Once it learned that the two dozen planes it had in its military paled in comparison to the 1000+ planes each held by France and Germany, plus Russia's 800+, it knew it had to move and move quickly. The rider added to the 1915 Naval Appropriation bill that created the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a first step.

National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics - Circa 1929

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

From the Library of Congress Title of the photograph:

"(from left to right) G.W. Lewis; Charles G. Abbet, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; Orville Wright, Inventor of the airplane; Commander John H. Towers; U.S.N., here of the first trans-atlantic flight in 1919; Joseph S. Amos, Chairman; Brig. Gen. Benjamin D. Foulois, first U.S. Army Aviator; William P. MacCracken, former Secretary of Commerce for Aviation; Charles F. Marvin, Chief U.S. Weather Bureau; David W. Taylor, Vice Chairman. Standing is John F. Victory, Secretary."

A noteworthy group!

The first of NACA's research facilities was the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory (Virginia); its construction began in 1917 and was completed and staffed in 1920. NACA focused on aerodynamics in its early days, partly due to the fact that it could do so more economically vs. focus on aircraft engines.

The Committee held annual industry conferences at Langley; the meetings served to update the industry of NACA's research efforts and give industry leaders a forum in which to provide feedback and input.

On the eve of World War II, NACA sought to expand its capabilities beyond Langley and also move much deeper into engine research. The US Congress approved funds in 1938 for construction, and initial outfitting, of Ames Aeronautical Laboratory (today, Ames Research Center) in Sunnyvale, California and the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory (today, NASA Glenn Research Center) in Cleveland, Ohio.

To be continued...


In final form, the NASA / Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) commemorative coin programs considered in the 109th Congress decreased the scope of the proposed 108th Congress programs but "upped the ante" for collectors. As in the 108th Congress, the House of Representatives bill was introduced (January 2005) by John Abney Culberson (R-TX) and referred to the House Committee on Financial Services with a further referral to its Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade, and Technology. The Senate bill was introduced (May 2006) by John Cornyn (R-TX) and referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

As introduced in the House, the 109th Congress bill mirrored the coin specifications of the 108th Congress House and Senate versions. Namely, 75,000 $10 Gold coins, 100,000 $5 Gold coins (split between two designs), 500,000 Silver Dollars (split between eight designs) and 500,000 Silver Half Dollars; 12 design types in all. Also carried forward from the 108th Congress bills were the "Realistic and Scientifically Accurate Depictions" and "Symbolic Inclusion of Metals That Have Flown in Space".provisions.

See the discussion of the 108th Congress bills here:

- What If? 2008 N A S A 50th Anniversary - 108th Congress.

The House bill was altered while undergoing Committee review and was amended, via substitution (June 2005), with a bill more in line with the 109th Congress' Senate bill . The amended bill reduced the scope of the program to a Gold $50 coin and a set of Silver Dollars. The Committee reported the amended bill favorably and recommended that it pass.

The House and Senate versions were thus aligned in their call for a commemorative program consisting of just two coin denominations (Gold $50 + Silver Dollar) vs. four.

The Gold $50 coin was to be a one troy ounce piece with an obverse design featuring the sun and a reverse design "emblematic of the sacrifice of the United States astronauts who lost their lives in the line of duty over the course of the space program." The designs were to be presented in high relief. Mintage of the coin was not to exceed 50,000.

The bills specified that the edge of the $50 coin "shall bear the names and dates of the spacecraft missions on which United States astronauts lost their lives over the course of the space program." It would appear as if this provision was meant to honor the astronauts who died in the Apollo 1 fire (1967) and the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegration disaster (2003).

Note: The bills included a provision that allowed the Mint to strike Bronze duplicates of the Gold $50 coin. They did not specify that the coin-specific inscriptions (e.g., the denomination) were to be omitted, but such would likely have been the case.

The Silver Dollar was again to used to represent the solar system, with nine different obverse designs, one for each planet, including Pluto and the Earth. (Keep in mind that the International Astronomical Union (IAU) did not downgrade Pluto to "Dwarf Planet" status until August 24, 2006.) The reverse designs were to "be emblematic of discoveries and missions of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to the planet depicted on the obverse of the coin. Special specifications were listed for the coins representing Earth, Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto.

The design for the reverse of the Earth coin was to be "emblematic of, and honoring, the discoveries and missions of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Mercury, Gemini and Space Shuttle missions and other manned Earth-orbiting missions, and the Apollo missions to the Moon." Quite a bit for one coin!

The Jupiter coin's reverse was to "include a scientifically accurate depiction of the Galilean moon Europa and depict both a past and future mission to Europa.

The reverse design of the Saturn coin was to include "a scientifically accurate depiction of the moon Titan and depict both a past and a future mission to Titan."

The reverse of the Pluto coin was to feature a design "emblematic of telescopic exploration of deep space by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the ongoing search for Earth-like planets orbiting other stars." I see an opportunity to commemorate the Hubble Space Telescope (launched in 1990) within these "deep space" design parameters.

The bills also indicated Congress' preference for edge inscriptions on the Silver Dollar, stating: "to the extent practicable, the edge of each $1 coin should bear the names and dates or range of dates of missions or mission types to the planet depicted on the obverse."

The distribution of surcharges was another area of the House bill that was amended. Payments to the NASA Family Assistance Fund (the sole beneficiary named in the 108th Congress bills) were limited to the first $1 million collected. Further surcharges were to be paid to the Smithsonian Institution, split 50-50 between supporting "the preservation, maintenance, and display of space artifacts at the National Air and Space Museum (including the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center) and "providing funding for the establishment of a new stand-alone National Museum of Money." A stand-alone numismatics museum would likely be welcomed by collectors, but I'm not sure the same could be said for the non-collecting public.

Lastly, the amended House bill also specified a special Presentation Set sales option:

"In addition to the issuance of coins under this Act in such other methods of presentation as the Secretary of the Treasury determines to be appropriate, the Secretary shall provide, as a sale option, a presentation case which displays the $50 gold coin in the center surrounded by the $1 silver coins in an elliptical orbit."

That would have been one expensive Presentation Set when full!

The amended House bill was called for consideration in the House in July 2005 - on the eve of the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. Multiple Representatives stood to express their support for the bill and to recognize NASA's and JPL's continued achievements in space exploration; the effort was led by the bill's sponsor - John Abney Culberson. Ultimately, the bill was passed in the House without objection and sent to the Senate for consideration. Once received in the Senate, it was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. The bill was never reported out of the Senate Committee, however, and eventually died for lack of action.

The separate Senate bill introduced by John Cornyn was never reported out of Committee either, and thus also died for lack of action.

So, four bills introduced over two Congresses, but no success in the attempt to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of NASA and the JPL. Personally, I think a smaller, simpler program would have had a better chance of success.

Next up, NASA coin bills in the 110th and 111th Congresses.


For more of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other What If? stories, see: Commems Collection.