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At the U.S. Space and Rocket Center,
Raya tries out the Apollo Lunar Module cockpit simulator. Not exactly
first-class accomodations!
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Eric takes a turn inside the Apollo simulator. These seats must have
been a lot more comfortable in weightless outer space!
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Raya gives one of the many hands-on simulators a try. Here, she's trying
to land the shuttle Columbia.
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Outside, at the USSRC's "Rocket Park," Raya poses in front
of a vertical, fully-assembled Saturn V rocket. This thing is so HUGE,
it's easily visible from a couple of miles away as you approach the
USSRC.
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Eric poses next to a Saturn V rocket dissassembled to show its three
separate stages.
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We took a bus tour of the Marshall
Space Flight Center, located adjacent to the USSRC on the US Army's
Redstone Arsenal. We went inside one of the buildings where NASA and
Boeing employees are working on pieces for the International Space Station,
including this lab module.
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Although it never actually flew into space, the Pathfinder was
America's first space shuttle. It was used for main engine tests as well
as test connections with the 747 airplane used to transport the shuttle
back and forth across the country. It's now on display in the USSRC's
"Shuttle Park," docked to a fully-functional external tank and
a pair of solid rocket boosters. Two of Pathfinder's three main
engines were actually used on a space flight by the shuttle Columbia.
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