Kennedy Space Center

The Captain

Saturday, October 29

We spent the day in space!  Well, not really, but we had a full day visiting the Kennedy Space Center.  We had been warned that you needed to allocate 6 – 8 hours for a visit so we planned our arrival for the park opening.  It is a fabulous place!  It is set up to accommodate big crowds of visitors but as we were there during the off-season, even though it was a Saturday, it wasn’t too busy and there was no difficulty moving around the exhibits and getting into any of the shows.  Also, unusual for an attraction, there is no additional cost for most of the displays including the Imax films.

We started our day with two Imax films: A Beautiful Planet 3D and Journey to Space 3D.  The first in particular was great but both were informative and the second explained ongoing projects in development including the potential to land on Mars.  We then passed through the Journey to Mars exhibit that further explained the challenges that needed to be overcome to successfully explore Mars.

Rocket Garden 

A guided tour around the Rocket Garden was next where they have full-scale replicas (or in some cases actual units) of the first rockets used.  The size of the rockets and their engines is incredible!  Even more so when learning that the newest engines are so much more powerful that one exceeds the thrust of five of the engines on the original rockets (Saturn V – Apollo) and there will be five of those more powerful engines on the launch vehicle for Challenger.  It is also pointed out that the computers that operated these rockets are less capable that our smart phones!

Saturn 1B

 A brief stop for lunch as we are realizing there is going to be more to see than we have time left in the day.  We couldn’t resist the opportunity to try out the Microsoft HoloLens Destination Mars exhibit – a virtual reality experience where you can experience actually being on Mars.  It’s pretty neat technology!

 

Vehicle Assembly Building

Boarding a bus, we then took the tour of the full Space Center grounds that brings you out to the launch pad area and the huge building where they assemble the rockets.  This building is the largest single story in the world and one of the largest buildings by volume at more than 3.5 million cubic metres!  Each of the doors is 456 feet high and takes 45 minutes to fully open or close.   Though it is a long ride, they intersperse on-board videos and live commentary from the driver to describe the items we passed by.  

The Crawler

There is a specific vehicle “The Crawler” that moved the completed rocket to the launch pad.  

Each of the links on the tracks weighs a ton and it is capable of lifting 8.2 million kgs.  Its top speed loaded is only 1.6km/h and it burns 296 litres per kilometer.  Captain is pleased Seas The Day gets better fuel economy!

Massive Rocket Engines

There is also a stop at the Apollo / Saturn V Center where you can walk under the 363 foot long Saturn V rocket – the one used during the Apollo missions to the moon. 

Saturn V

Seeing it in person really makes you appreciate its size.  

Control room for Saturn Launch

One of the cool ;) parts of this exhibit is that you experience the launch of Apollo 8 and the control center is the actual one used during the launch. 

Moon Landing simulation

They set the clock and show footage as if it is taking place and they spotlight the control panels in play as they do the countdown and add some other effects to make you feel as if it is taking place.

Launch Platform

While NASA is no longer launching rockets, the launch pad we saw is leased and in use by Space Ex and there are also a few hangars in use by Boeing.  There is also a lot of wildlife on the site because it shares a boundary with the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.  Their protected beach is used to hatch turtles and there is a tree that hosts a huge Bald Eagle’s nest that is visible on the tour.

Shuttle Launch Vehicle

Back at the main visitor complex, we are really running short of time and are unable to see all that remains.  We make a super fast tour through the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit and did participate in the Shuttle Launch Experience where you are strapped in and feel like you are launching into space.

Shuttle 

By this time, nearing 6pm and the park closing, we had to leave.

Canadarm

Before choosing to make this visit we were concerned that the price of admission might lead to disappointment but, in fact, it more than exceeded expectation and we would encourage anyone who has the opportunity to visit.  We could have spent more time if there were more hours in the day and opening in a few weeks is a new exhibit – Heroes and Legends – which would provide even more to see.