Pirates to host “Apollo at the Park” at PNC Park

The Pittsburgh Pirates have partnered with the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum to be one of 15 Major League Baseball teams to host the 2019 “Apollo at the Park” exhibit, a program that will display full-sized statues of Neil Armstrong’s Apollo 11 spacesuit.

As the nation celebrates the 50th anniversary of the July 20, 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum will place 15 replica statues of Armstrong’s iconic spacesuit in ballparks across the country.

The suit will be on display on the PNC Park Riverwalk behind section 142, starting today, Monday, July 1, and lasting through the remainder of the season. The prominent placement of the suit allows all fans to enjoy the interactive display not just on game days, but off-days as well as the Riverwalk is open to the public most afternoons.

The full-sized replica spacesuit is an interactive display as fans are encouraged to scan the suit to unlock exclusive content on the Apollo 11 mission. The scan will unlock exclusive content about the Apollo 11 mission through a digital content activation only available when interacting with the suit.

In addition, fans are encouraged to use #SnapTheSuit as they share their photos of the exhibit on Twitter and Instagram.

Thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015, the suit was conserved and digitized to be put back on display for the first time in over a decade. Armstrong’s spacesuit was 3D scanned and those scans were used to create an authentic replica of the suit to give ballpark visitors a look at the many intricate details.

For complete information on “Apollo at the Park,” visit airandspace.si.edu/apollo-park