There are SO many things to do in Orlando, Florida! Alan and I decided that we needed to just pick out our top favorites, find the best deals and just skip the rest. Kennedy Space Center was one of our top priorities, especially for Alan. Alan was an electrical engineer for over 9 years before he went into ministry full-time. He worked for a small engineering firm just north of Houston, Texas. During the time he worked there, he was involved with some projects for NASA. He did get the opportunity to visit the Space Center as part of his job many years ago. He really was excited to come back and take time to tour the museum and show the boys.
We had a great day discovering and learning more about the history of space exploration. I have to say, Alan and I both left feeling so patriotic! Many dedicated Americans sacrificed their lives so that we could learn more about space.
First we took a bus tour of NASA's launch and landing facilities.
This is the building that supported the Space Shuttle operations. The garage doors are the tallest in the world, measuring at over 450 feet high. The doors actually take 45 minutes to open! You can't really tell from the picture, but the American flag located on this side of the building is enormous! The stripes on the flag are 9 feet wide, and the stars are 6 feet across!
Next we arrived at the Apollo/Saturn V Center. After an inspiring film describing the history of space exploration, we entered the museum part that housed Saturn V.
This chart compared the size and height of the rocket to various other objects such as the statue of liberty. As you can see, Saturn V is taller than the length of an entire football field!
We even got to touch a moon rock! The boys thought it just felt like a piece of plastic:)
There were also displays of astronaut uniforms from over the years...
Have you seen the movie Apollo 13? At the Space Center, they have detailed information about the voyage which was called a "successful failure." It was a success obviously because everyone made it home safely. The failure part was not being able to make their mission to the moon. It was fascinating to see the actual photos and items from the shuttle.
Below is the Command Service Module Rescue Book signed by Mission Commander James Lovell. This was used as a reference throughout the Apollo 13 crisis. The Appreciation Plaque on the right is in appreciation "for a job well done" from the Apollo 13 crew to the personnel of the Kennedy Space Center. It features a piece of the armrest of the Lunar Module.
In the late 1960s, NASA chose Snoopy of the comic strip "Peanuts" to be their mascot. They decided he would "emphasize mission success and act as a 'watchdog' for flight safety." The creator of Snoopy, Charles Schulz, enthusiastically agreed to the idea (as long as he was the one to draw Snoopy and the copyright notice was displayed). In 1969, Apollo 10's Charlie Brown command module and Snoopy lunar module traveled to the moon from the Kennedy Space Center. This was a practice mission for the moon landing of Apollo 11. The Snoopy lunar module is still in solar orbit to this day, and it is the only surviving lunar module sent into space.
The little boys enjoyed some time at the outdoor space playground in the afternoon!
All of the boys enjoyed operating the Orbital Docking Simulator. It was actually a lot harder than it looks!
Can you imagine being cramped in this spacecraft with another person for 2 weeks? On Gemini 7, Frank Borman and Jim Lovell made over 200 orbits and spent 14 days in their spacecraft. It was so tight, they couldn't even stretch their legs!
Here is a very professional re-enactment of take off, orbit, and landing...
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| SILLY BOYS:) |
Blessings to you and yours,
Jill and the boys:)
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