The Congressional Space Medal of Honor

Time Period: Post-WW2
Institution: 29 September 1969
Country: United States

The Congressional Space Medal of Honor is awarded by the President of the United States in Congress’s name on recommendations from the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The medal was authorized by the United States Congress in 1969 to recognize “Any astronaut who in the performance of his or her duties has distinguished himself or herself by exceptionally meritorious efforts and contributions to the welfare of the Nation and mankind“.

To be awarded the medal, an astronaut must perform feats of extraordinary accomplishment while participating in space flight under the authority of NASA.

The decoration can be awarded for scientific discoveries or actions of tremendous benefit to mankind, for extreme bravery during a space emergency, or in preventing a major space disaster. It can also be presented posthumously to those astronauts who die while performing a US space mission (as of 2019, all 17 astronauts killed on US missions have been awarded the medal).

Although this is a civilian award, its use is authorized as a military decoration for display on U.S. military uniforms due to the prestige of the decoration. In such cases, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor is worn as a ribbon following all United States Armed Forces decorations.

Only one Congressional Space Medal of Honor may be awarded to a person, however, for each succeeding act that would otherwise justify the award of the Medal, the President may award a suitable bar or another device.

The Congressional Space Medal of Honor Design

The medal was designed by the Institute of Heraldry, U.S. Army. The suspension is a gold eagle with wings displayed.

The obverse is a circular green enamel wreath of laurel is surmounted by a five-pointed gold star. Between each point of the star is a gold flame. The star is surmounted by a light blue enamel cloud bank with five lobes edged in gold, bearing a five-pointed dark blue enamel star with a diamond in the center. The laurel wreath is a symbol of great achievement, while the overlapping star points simulate space vehicles moving to greater accomplishments through space. The flames signify the dynamic energy of the rocket era and the imagination of the men in the space program of the United States. The stylized glory cloud alludes to the glory in the coat of arms of the United States and to the high esteem of the award. The dark blue voided star symbolizes the vast mysteries of outer space while the brilliancy of the feat is represented by a diamond. The eagle with wings raised in the spirit of peace represents man’s first landing on another planet.

The reverse bears in the center the inscription “CONGRESSIONAL” arranged in a semicircle above the inscription “SPACE MEDAL PRESENTED TO” and the name of the recipient as well as the date, all within an outer circle of fifty stars.

The ribbon is 1 3/4 inches and has the following vertical stripes: gold, dark blue, light blue, white and red (mirrored). The scarlet center line symbolizes the courage of the astronauts, the nation’s manned space program and the fire power of rockets flying through the earth‘s atmosphere. The light blue is the same color as the chief of the shield of the coat of arms of the United States which appears on the President’s flag. The dark blue symbolizes the hostile environment of space.