Celebrating Coins and Space!

The US Mint and NASA Celebrates

Decades of Coins and Space

What’s been to Mars, the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Kuiper Belt? The answer may surprise you – U.S. coins.

In addition to sending coins to space, the Mint also designs coins and medals to honor the accomplishments of the U.S. space program. This year, two coin programs mark the achievements of the Gemini and Apollo space programs: the 2019 Native American $1 Coin and the Apollo 11 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Program.

The 2019 Native American $1 Coin highlights Mary Golda Ross of the Cherokee Nation, who was the first Native American engineer in the U.S. space program. Her research for Lockheed Martin’s top secret think tank, Skunk Works helped to develop the Agena spacecraft for the Gemini and Apollo space programs.

The coin design features Ross writing calculations, with an Atlas-Agena rocket launching into space in the background with an equation inscribed in its cloud.

The equation represents the energy it takes to leave Earth and reach the orbit of a distant planet. The coin also features John Herrington of Chickasaw Nation, who in 2002 was the first Native American to walk in space. 

The Mint also launched a commemorative coin program to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing. The Apollo 11 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Program includes four coins of gold, silver, clad, and five ounce silver that share the same design. 

The obverse shows a footprint on the Moon’s surface and honors the contributions of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. The reverse is astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s helmet with a reflection of Neil Armstrong, the lunar lander, and the American flag. In 1971, the Mint honored the Moon landing by making the country’s first space-themed coin. The 1971 Eisenhower dollar reverse featured an eagle on the moon, a copy of Apollo 11’s insignia.