Mars' saucer ready for spotlight
The iconic flying saucer, a symbol of downtown Mars, is looking its best just in time for the Mars Exploration Celebration being held this weekend thanks to two companies.
The spaceship, which has been a staple of the town since the 1980s, flew out of Mars — by crane — at the end of March and was taken to Oesterling’s Sandblasting & Painting in Butler to be sanded and coated in paint.
The paint coatings, which were the PPG Coraflon Air-Dry System and covered the ship in a metallic silver shade, were donated by Pittsburgh-based PPG.
Jackie Kulfan, PPG proposal and contract manager, lives in Mars herself. She said two years ago she saw a photograph of Chris Clutter, the secretary of the Mars Area History and Landmark Society, painting the saucer with a roller.
“We are pleased to help protect and beautify this iconic town landmark, which is located about 25 miles north of PPG’s global headquarters in Pittsburgh,” she said in a press release Friday.
The new coating system is expected to last a minimum of 15 years.
The spaceship, about 9 feet in diameter and weighs nearly 2,000 pounds, was originally built by a local resident as a joke, according to Mayor Gregg Hartung. But, as the setting for a handshake between an American astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut and the topic of a BBC documentary, it’s become a staple attraction over the years.
The saucer was reinstalled on May 23.
This weekend’s Mars Exploration Celebration, which is being sponsored by the PPG Science Education Council for the first time, is an extension of the New Year Celebration. The science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) event is held in conjunction with NASA and includes attractions like a flight simulator and a drone show. Activities are planned through Sunday.
“Greater Pittsburgh is our headquarters community, and we remain committed to increasing the educational, cultural and recreational opportunities for our employees, customers and neighbors,” said Sharon Bird, PPG TrueFinish marketing manager, in a press release. “By investing in educational activities like the Mars Exploration Celebration, we help grow today’s skilled workforce and develop tomorrow’s innovators in fields related to coatings and manufacturing.”
