Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex

Recently the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex opened the new Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit, so I bought a ticket online and found an available weekend to go check it out. The last time I had been to the KSC Visitor Complex was when I was in school on a field trip. Nothing had been extremely exciting or memorable about the experience. While I love space and the technology involved in exploring it, the Visitor Complex is mostly just a bunch of stuff with signs explaining it.

The shuttle being there was a game changer though. I had to at least go see it once – it’s the shuttle! Upon getting to the Visitor Complex, I made my way around the Rocket Garden to see all the rockets that have been used in launches. It’s probably the most exciting exhibit outside of the new shuttle exhibit and one of the few things I remembered from my childhood visit.

Eventually I made my way to Space Shuttle Atlantis and waited in line. Before seeing the actual shuttle, they had us stand in a theatre to watch a movie about how they designed the shuttle. After that movie, we walked into a second room to watch another movie about the shuttle launch, which included additional screens on the sides of the room and ceiling. Finally the shuttle was revealed and it was one of the best reveals I’d ever seen – I almost didn’t think it was real at first.

We got to walk around the shuttle and other mini-exhibits around it. After checking out the workout station, the space toilet, Canadarm, the orbiter, and other exhibits, I made my way towards the exit just as the next group of people entered – perfect timing by the designers.

The shuttle exhibit made the entire experience worth it and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in space, history, or just random “must-see” tourist attractions.

Rocket Launch at Port Canaveral

On August 7^th, I went to Port Canaveral to watch a rocket launch from Kennedy Space Center. I rode down with one friend while another met us down there with his family. The rocket launch happened just after sundown, so we got a good sunset view over the intercostal first. We had arrived early to get a parking spot just outside the parking area for the cruise terminals.

My mother claims that when I was a kid we had unexpectedly seen a shuttle launch while walking on the beach, however I don’t remember that. Other than that, I had never seen a launch before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Eventually the sky turned dark and soon the distance lit it back up again. The rocket launched into the air and dispatched its four boosters while sailing off into the sky.

It was a cool sight to see, but given the chance a few months later to see a launch at three in the morning, I passed it up. The excitement wasn’t nearly high enough to ruin a perfectly good night of sleep.

 

I recorded video of the launch on my phone:

Mission: WGS 6 (Wideband Gapfiller Satellite)

Vehicle: Delta IV

Launch Site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

Kennedy Space Center: Astronaut Training Experience

Back in June, I went to the Kennedy Space Center’s Astronaut Training Experience. We started by getting to take a look inside a replica of the orbiter, seeing the lower level, climbing up to the upper level where the Commander and Pilot sit, then come back down and out the hatch.

 

After the tour, we went to a room with simulators set up. We split into groups of two to work together on landing the shuttle. One person would do the landing while the other person would punch in commands into a green-screen application, such as turning off auto-pilot, dropping the landing gear, and deploying the parachute. After taking turns, the teams could also try the docking simulation. The person who got the best stats in four categories on the landing simulation got to be the Commander for their mission (there were two larger groups, each doing a mission).

 

While one team did their mission, the other would be able to train on a zero-G ladder and multi-axis chair. The zero-G ladder had you strapped into a harness and they counter-balanced your weight perfectly do that if you did nothing, you would not go up or down. You could use your arms to pull yourself up a series of ‘rungs’ and then pull yourself back down. We had some fun propelling off the ground and grabbing the bars to stop ourselves.

 

The multi-axis chair was a 60-second spin on three axes, while they asked you a couple simple questions to test your mental functionality while spinning. My questions were to spell ‘chocolate’ backwards and what year it was 39 years ago. I nailed both. *brushes off shoulders*

 

Then the teams switched places and our team started our mission. The Commander and Pilot made their way to the orbiter while the rest of us took our seats in the control room. My job was the Flight Dynamics Officer – or FIDO. We simulated take-off, deployment of a satellite from the payload bay, and return to Earth.

 

The two teams recombined after this and we got a quick tour of some space items – space food, items that we wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for NASA research, etc. And then we got to meet with an astronaut – Robert Springer. He gave us information on the space program and left time for us to ask questions before we all headed back out to the main room (with the orbiter) and took pictures with Mr. Springer.

 

Anyone who is interested in space, space technology, or anything similar would enjoy this 4-hour training experience. The price is reasonable for the amount of time and amount of knowledge and entertainment you get out of it.