Our friends over at the Associated Press have dug deep into a story that’s weighing heavily on all of our minds today: Why is it that the National Air and Space Museum, once the proud champion of the Smithsonian’s annual Awesomest Awards for Attendance, has fallen from favor with the museum-attending set. Air and Space’s attendance fell below that of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History for the first time in recent memory last year, dropping from a peak in 2003 of 9.4 million to only 5 million in 2006. What gives?

… the museum could use some freshening up, according to some visitors.

Allen Witt, an engineer from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, said many of the displays seemed to stop after the mid-1980s.

Still, he said, “I don’t think this museum will ever lose its relevance. It will get more historic through time.” (Emphasis added)

You don’t say? It will become even more historic as history continues to unfold? Amazing!

Now, you’d be hard pressed to find a bigger collection of sci-fi loving space geeks in the metro area than at a DCist staff meeting, so we’re not kidding when we say we’re deeply concerned about this turn of events. The idea of a ragtag team of punk insects and dinosaurs from the Museum of Natural History, whose national origins are certainly in dispute, taking on the likes of true Americans like Buzz Aldrin or the Wright brothers and winning just doesn’t sit right. With this in mind, we’d like to offer a hastily thrown together list of suggestions and possible reasons behind Air and Space’s decline, all with dubious grounding in reality. Add your ideas in the comments.

Why are fewer people going to the National Air and Space Museum?

  • Astronaut Ice Cream finally revealed to be made of chalk.
  • The Museum of the American Indian has better food.
  • Battlestar Galactica really is that good, keeping folks chained to their TVs.
  • Ever since the country saw Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck save the world from a meteor in Armageddon, the ideas of an International Space Station and unmanned vehicle to Mars just don’t seem that exciting anymore.
  • The continued absence of an exhibit including William Shatner’s 1970s performance of “Rocket Man”.
  • Mumble mumble something in poor taste about a crazy murderous woman wearing diapers mumble mumble.
  • Parents are finally sick of hearing their kids snickering when they get to the exhibit of the Enola Gay
  • Despite a letter writing campaign, Spacecamp 2: Electric Boogaloo never made nor shown in the museum’s IMAX theater.
  • When they didn’t let Lance Bass into space, it just wasn’t worth it anymore.
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