Bill to rename Sandusky's NASA Plum Brook Station for Neil Armstrong passes both houses of Congress, heads to President Trump's desk

WASHINGTON — It appears that NASA's Plum Brook Station in Sandusky will soon have a new name. 

On Wednesday, a bipartisan bill introduced by Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) to rename the station after Ohio native Neil Armstrong passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is on its way to President Trump's desk for signing into law. 

A companion bill introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) was introduced last year and has since passed. 

RELATED: Ohio senators propose renaming NASA site for Neil Armstrong

Plum Brook is part of the NASA John H. Glenn Research Center and is home to unique world-class facilities that conduct critical and innovative tests for the international aerospace community. The station is testing a new generation of space exploration technologies that are essential for NASA’s plans to explore the lunar surface and again land humans on the Moon. 

"The Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility Act renames the NASA Plum Brook Station after a true American Hero. The Plum Brook Station located in Sandusky Ohio is a true asset to American excellence in space exploration. The facilities at the site are second to none," Kaptur said in remarks given prior to the final vote. "The Plum Brook Station and test facility in Sandusky Ohio is a national asset, and today, it is being renamed after a pioneer in human history."

The station will be renamed as The NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at the Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility. Armstrong, a native of Wapokoneta, was the first man to walk on the Moon during the Apollo XI flight in 1969.

"Renaming Plum Brook Station after one of our state’s greatest icons is a fitting way to memorialize Neil Armstrong’s legacy within the state of Ohio and to inspire the next generation of leaders in our quest to explore the universe,” said Rep. Gonzalez. “I am pleased to join Ohio's Senators, Congresswoman Kaptur, and the rest of the Ohio delegation in getting this legislation passed through Congress and on its way to the President's desk."

More coverage:

• Orion space capsule gets set to leave Northeast Ohio as NASA's journey back to the Moon continues
• NASA releases Orion space capsule images ahead of testing phase at Plum Brook
• NASA's Orion spacecraft arrives at Plum Brook Station in Sandusky

Editor's Note: The below story aired on March 23, 2020