Kennedy Space Center -  Florida

An interesting part of the tour to see is the International Space Station, a cooperative effort of sixteen nations, which is in the process of being built as a permanent research facility in space. When fully completed in space, it will be approximately the size of two football fields.

Brand new tours have been added to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to include up-close access to the LC39 Observation Gantry, which is a secure area. Launch Pad 39A can be seen only a mile away from here, where all the space shuttles have lifted off from. This is also where all of the Apollo missions except for one departed from. From within the Gantry area, one can see an actual space shuttle engine suspended in the tower, weighing over 7,000 pounds. Within the theatre and on display, you can see the steps involved in preparing a space shuttle for a mission, and also the steps taken prior to liftoff.

The next stop is the Apollo/Saturn V Center which houses a 6.2 million-pound Saturn V rocket used for the Apollo missions, one of only three in the world. This rocket contained enough comparative power to light up New York City for over an hour! In a realistic "you are there" theatre, you are immersed in the story of the Apollo space program, with the launch date of December 21, 1968 recreated, as Apollo 8 leaves the launch pad with three astronauts aboard. The theatre includes many of the original countdown clocks, status boards, launch consoles, and equipment from the actual firing room where scientists watched the launch. "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". The words of Neil Armstrong are echoed as you watch the Apollo 11 mission as it heads for man's first landing on the moon in the Lunar Surface Theatre.  

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