Now more than ever, it seems that humanity’s future lies waiting for us among the stars. The “space race” is on again. But instead of it being a race between nations, various private companies from around the globe are now reaching for the stars.
Previously, I have discussed the rising concept of space tourism. I noted that, while still costly, it is no longer just the plaything of billionaires. The idea of travelling to space has become more accessible than ever before. We’ve watched ships from SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic take on sub-orbital and orbital travel. Plus, we’ve seen these companies taking on the task of starting to shuttle humans to the International Space Station and back.
We have sent robotic vessels to the moon. We have sent more robots and even a small flying drone to Mars. Earlier this month we even smashed a vessel into an asteroid to see if we could alter its orbital path.
NASA’s Artemis
It wasn’t that long ago that ideas like this were simply the topic of science fiction films like Armageddon. Yet with the massive Artemis rocket now poised on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center, things are getting very serious once again indeed.
NASA’s Artemis rocket’s goal is to put men and women on the moon once again, setting the path ahead for even more future endeavours into space. The launch of Artemis has suffered delays but was ready to make the first unmanned test launch last month. Unfortunately, a couple of new issues shut down the proposed launch dates.
First, there were some issues with leaky fuel seals, with Artemis on the launch pad and ready to go. Then Hurricane Ian arrived in Florida. This required the team to roll Artemis back into the shelter of the Vehicle Assembly Building (or VAB for short). Currently, Artemis is now set to attempt another launch on 14 November. There is just a 69-minute launch window available to send the unmanned rocket on a 25-day long trip to the moon and back, with a splashdown planned off the coast of San Diego.
If everything goes as planned the slow crawl of rolling Artemis from the VAB back to the launch pad could take place as early as 4 November.
Exploring Artemis at the Kennedy Space Center
Before that, however, Artemis spent most of the summer on the launch pad itself, preparing for the journey into space. I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of it in June when visiting the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Prior to this, I had only been there twice before. The first time was with my family in around 1992. At this time, the tour mostly featured a few displays of older rockets and a bus trip out to drive by the VAB. On my second visit in June of 1998, we skipped the KSC tour itself. That’s because we were there to witness the actual launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery.
Witnessing an actual launch in person is quite an experience. It is really quite unlike watching it from the safety of home on a screen. While the view of the rocket itself on the screen is superior, due to the distance that the public is kept from the actual rocket during the launch, witnessing a true launch is an experience that I would describe as something that you actually feel rather than see.
The noise from the launch is so unreal and loud. Even from a viewing distance of two miles from the launch pad, you feel the rocket take off in every fiber of your body.
So, if you ever have the chance to witness a launch in person, I highly recommend you do it. After all, until the past couple of years, with the retirement of the American Space Shuttle fleet, the chance to view an actual rocket launch was few and far between. Thankfully this has changed now. Seeing the tall Artemis rocket waiting on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center just brought it all back into focus once again.
Making improvements
The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex has changed for the better since I last visited it 30 years ago. For lack of a better term, the arrival and entry experience into Kennedy Space Center is similar to how guests would enter a theme park, in the best possible way.
The complex has been built up over the years. It now offers a look and feel quite similar to what guests would enjoy at Epcot’s Future World area back in the 1980s and 90s. It has the feel of a scientific Expo or World’s Fair, dominated by a skyline of massive rockets, huge buildings, and an overall dream of a future where space exploration is open to all humanity.
As you would expect, the Kennedy Space Center is full of museum-style displays featuring the actual pieces of equipment used to create our early steps into the concept of space travel. Flight suits, test ships and massive rockets are on display everywhere. Many feature the actual burns and scarring from the flames of launch or the burn of re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.
The old bus tour is still there. This takes you out to see the massive VAB building where the rockets are built, as well as a stop at a large attraction building and exhibit dedicated to the Apollo moon missions of the past. You can also best see the various launch pads scattered around the Kennedy Space Center complex. Meanwhile, upon your return back to the main complex an ever-growing series of new attractions have sprouted up over the past decade or so.
This is where the comparisons to Epcot’s Future World come into play. But it is as if every pavilion building in Future World was instead dedicated to covering all the various aspects of space travel. I already mentioned the area dedicated to the Apollo missions, but the KSC also has IMAX theater presentations and an exhibit about the robotic exploration of Mars. And then there is the Space Shuttle Atlantis building.
Viewing Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center is the final home to the actual Atlantis space shuttle. This is presented beautifully and powerfully through a series of presentations that document the creation of the Space Shuttle program. These eventually lead to an emotionally powerful grand reveal moment of the actual shuttle in front of your eyes.
Without exaggeration, this reveal made me break out in a stream of tears that would not stop for several minutes. Only once they subsided could I venture forth and take in the beauty of the Atlantis shuttle poised as if in flight, hovering right in front of me.
If that wasn’t enough, in addition to several other well-done display sections contained within the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit space, there was also the arrival of the KSC’s first actual “ride” in the form of the Shuttle Launch Experience. Visitors can climb aboard and strap into a simulated ride on a space shuttle. This allows them to experience what it is like to blast off into space.
From here we were also allowed a sneak peek at the time into Kennedy Space Center’s latest attraction, The “Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex”. This later opened to the public on 15 June. Visiting the Apollo and Atlantis attractions gives you a clear view of the history of our travels into space. Meanwhile, the focus of Gateway is on what is happening right now in the present day.
Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex
Inside Gateway, guests can see a presentation all about the current and immediate future plans underway.
As well as exploring the technology behind the Artemis program, guests will also get a look at other new tech. For instance, the Orion EFT-1 Capsule, a used SpaceX Cargo Dragon COTS-2 (burn marks and all), and the actual SpaceX Falcon 9 booster rocket that lifted an actual Tesla Roadster car into space.
Past here, guests will venture up into the second level to experience the KSC’s latest ride-style attraction, the Spaceport KSC. Here guests can choose from one of four entirely different flight mission experiences, in a ride system that presents itself as a space flight-themed version of a flying theater ride.
The experience is themed as if you have entered into a gigantic spaceport in the future. Visitors can opt for either: Cosmic Wonders, Daring Explorers, Red Planet or Uncharted Worlds. The interesting thing here is that all of the journeys will reflect real actual locations, as determined by current science. It shows off incredible locations such as Mars, Trappist-1, Horsehead Nebula, Saturn, Jupiter and more.
I was not able to get a ride on the actual attraction, since it was prior to the grand opening. However, I was told that the unique operating system for the four theaters was set up to allow for any of the four different experiences to be run in each of the theaters at the press of a few buttons.
From an operations standpoint, this was a brilliant concept. If the demand or wait time for any one of the four different experiences offered became far greater than the others, they could easily shorten the queue by running it in more than one theater at the same time, as needed.
The idea of space travel, rockets and exploration is now firmly in the mind of the world. And I see a bright future ahead for the Kennedy Space Center. In the meantime, keep on reaching… the stars are almost within your grasp.
