Today is National Space Day created to celebrate the pursuit of knowledge and progress in space. WNY has played a big part in space exploration starting in the 1950s with the Agena rocket engines built in Wheatfield and continuing to the present-day Mars Curiosity Rover with ball bearings supplied by SKF in Falconer. In fact, WNY has a long history of aerospace innovation starting with Hammondsport native Glenn Curtiss’ fabled Curtiss Jenny, through the first American jet (P-59 Airacomet) to the iconic Bell X-1, the first aircraft to break the sound barrier. And we’re not done yet as Moog, Astronics, SKF and others continue to be key contributors to America’s space program. Happy Space Day!
