Infinity Eagle is a sculpture by renowned artist Marlin Miller and his son, Preston, created as a gift to the people of the Mississippi Coast. Its metal was fabricated from engine and test stand hardware used in NASA Stennis Space Center propulsion test programs, including turbine blades actually flown in space supporting Space Shuttle missions. The sculpture is 32 feet tall and is held in place by 40,000 pounds of concrete. Miller intended it to honor Apollo 13 astronaut Fred Haise, a Biloxi, Mississippi, native who served as Lunar Module Pilot during the mission after an onboard cryogenic oxygen explosion 55 hours into flight forced the crew to orbit the moon in peril and return safely to earth using the Lunar Module as a virtual lifeboat. Haise also commanded one of only two 2-man crews that piloted Space Shuttle approach and landing test flights. In retirement he worked to inspire young people and joined Roy Estess, Leo Seal, Jr. and George Schloegel in making INFINITY a reality. In 2009 NASA recognized him as an ambassador of exploration and as a living example of what can be done by dreaming big and daring to try amazing things. The doors of INFINITY opened on April 11, 2012, in recognition of the April 11 launch of Apollo 13 in 1970.