NASA Space Center Tour

(KENNEDY SPACE CENTER TOUR)

Worldwide Specialty Travel is offering Kennedy Space Center Tour in 2010
For more information on NASA Space Center Tour, please contact us here

Your US vacation is not complete without a trip to Kennedy Space Center. Just 45 minutes from popular Orlando attractions and theme parks is NASA’s launch headquarters – the only place on Earth where you can tour launch areas, meet an Astronaut, see giant rockets, train in spaceflight simulators, and even view a launch.

Experience more on your vacation to Orlando with a daytrip to Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, where the sky isn't the limit - it's just the beginning.

Shuttle Discovery - Launching date and time of STS-131

Space Shuttle Tours

Space shuttle Discovery will bring a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module to the International Space Station. The module will be filled with science racks that will be transferred to laboratories on the Station.

April 5
Time(s): 6:27 a.m. ET
Location: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Shuttle Discovery - STS-131

Space shuttle Discovery will bring a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module to the International Space Station. The module will be filled with science racks that will be transferred to laboratories on the Station.

A limited number of STS-131 launch viewing tickets to view the launch from the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame® are now available by calling (866) 737-5235 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (866) 737-5235 end_of_the_skype_highlighting. Visitor Complex and NASA Causeway launch viewing tickets are sold out. Due to the expected retirement of the space shuttle in 2010, an increased interest in space shuttle launches has created a higher demand for space shuttle launch viewing tickets.

This package includes an Admission ticket to Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex with launch viewing from the main Visitor Complex grounds. You will also receive a launch package with a vehicle placard to access the Visitor Complex on launch day.

STS-131's Group Portrait of Crew

Image above: Seated are Commander Alan Poindexter (right) and Pilot James P. Dutton Jr. From the left (standing) are Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Stephanie Wilson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Naoko Yamazaki and Clayton Anderson. Image credit: NASA

Don't miss the opportunity to witness Commander Alan Poindexter and the STS-131 crew launch to the International Space Station. Launch time and date subject to change.

Commander Alan Poindexter will lead the STS-131 mission to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Discovery. Jim Dutton will serve as the pilot. Mission Specialists are Rick Mastracchio, Clay Anderson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Discovery will deliver a multi-purpose logistics module filled with science racks to be transferred to laboratories on the International Space Station. The mission will feature three spacewalks.

Mastracchio and Anderson will conduct three six-and-a-half-hour-long spacewalks on flight days 5, 7 and 9 to replace an ammonia tank assembly, retrieve a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior and switch out a rate gyro assembly on the S0 element of the station’s truss.

Shuttle Basics

The Space Shuttle is the world's first reusable spacecraft, and the first spacecraft in history that can carry large satellites both to and from orbit. The Shuttle launches like a rocket, maneuvers in Earth orbit like a spacecraft and lands like an airplane. Each of the three Space Shuttle orbiters now in operation -- Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour -- is designed to fly at least 100 missions. So far, altogether they have flown a combined total of less than one-fourth of that.

Columbia was the first Space Shuttle orbiter to be delivered to NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in March 1979. Columbia and the STS-107 crew were lost Feb. 1, 2003, during re-entry. The Orbiter Challenger was delivered to KSC in July 1982 and was destroyed in an explosion during ascent in January 1986. Discovery was delivered in November 1983. Atlantis was delivered in April 1985. Endeavour was built as a replacement following the Challenger accident and was delivered to Florida in May 1991. An early Space Shuttle Orbiter, the Enterprise, never flew in space but was used for approach and landing tests at the Dryden Flight Research Center and several launch pad studies in the late 1970s.

The Space Shuttle consists of three major components: the Orbiter which houses the crew; a large External Tank that holds fuel for the main engines; and two Solid Rocket Boosters which provide most of the Shuttle's lift during the first two minutes of flight. All of the components are reused except for the external fuel tank, which burns up in the atmosphere after each launch.

The longest the Shuttle has stayed in orbit on any single mission is 17.5 days on mission STS-80 in November 1996. Normally, missions may be planned for anywhere from five to 16 days in duration. The smallest crew ever to fly on the Shuttle numbered two people on the first few missions. The largest crew numbered eight people. Normally, crews may range in size from five to seven people. The Shuttle is designed to reach orbits ranging from about 185 kilometers to 643 kilometers (115 statute miles to 400 statute miles) high.

The Shuttle has the most reliable launch record of any rocket now in operation. Since 1981, it has boosted more than 1.36 million kilograms (3 million pounds) of cargo into orbit. More than than 600 crew members have flown on its missions. Although it has been in operation for almost 20 years, the Shuttle has continually evolved and is significantly different today than when it first was launched. NASA has made literally thousands of major and minor modifications to the original design that have made it safer, more reliable and more capable today than ever before.

Since 1992 alone, NASA has made engine and system improvements that are estimated to have tripled the safety of flying the Space Shuttle, and the number of problems experienced while a Space Shuttle is in flight has decreased by 70 percent. During the same period, the cost of operating the Shuttle has decreased by one and a quarter billion dollars annually -- a reduction of more than 40 percent. At the same time, because of weight reductions and other improvements, the cargo the Shuttle can carry has increased by 7.3 metric tons (8 tons.)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTRE (KSC) TOURS

Your exploration of NASA's launch headquarters traverses an amazing area that includes towering launch pads, huge rockets, history-making technology, and vast stretches of Florida wildlife. The NASA Up-Close tour and the Cape Canaveral: Then & Now tour are guided by a space program expert and take you deeper into the operations of Kennedy Space Center.

NASA Up-Close Tour: The highlight of this tour for most visitors is the A/B Camera Stop, where visitors have the closest possible Space Shuttle Launch Pad viewing, and ends at the amazing Apollo/Saturn V Center

Cape Canaveral: Then & Now Tour:
You'll relive the launch of America's first satellite at the Air Force Space and Missile Museum and see today's active rocket program. Ends at the Apollo/Saturn V Center. Reservations are limited

Kennedy Space Center Tour: Included with admission and takes you to the International Space Station Center, LC 39 Observation Gantry, and the Apollo/Saturn V Center. Departs every 15 minutes from the Visitor Complex

Visitor Complex

Your journey into mankind's greatest adventure starts here at the Visitor Complex, where amazing exhibits and inspiring shows will immerse you into the past, present and future of the space program.

1 Early Space Exploration 9 Exploration in the New Millennium 2 Debus Conference Facility 10 Astronaut Encounter 3 Rocket Garden 11 Mad Mission to Mars 4 Center for Space Education 12 Information Center 5 Space Walk of Honor 13 Robot Scouts 6 Astronaut Memorial 14 Space Shop 7 IMAX Theater #2 15 Bus Boarding 8 IMAX Theater #1 16 Space Shuttle Plaza

Worldwide Specialty Travel is offering Kennedy Space Center Tour in 2010
For more information on NASA Space Center Tour, please contact us here

Your exploration of Kennedy Space Center starts with one of our world renowned tours, where you depart the Visitor Complex to see awesome NASA facilities, including the massive launch pads, gigantic Vehicle Assembly Building, and exploring the awe inspiring Apollo/Saturn V Center. There is much to do at the Visitor Co`mplex when you return, from live action theatrical shows like Mad Mission to Mars, to the inspiring Astronaut Encounter briefing with an actual NASA Astronaut - one of the few people on Earth who have been to space. View ten-story high rockets from all eras of space exploration in the Rocket Garden, walk through a full-size Space Shuttle mock-up, see IMAX space films on gigantic five-story screens, and see an actual Gemini program capsule on display in Early Space Exploration.

In 2 giant IMAX® theaters, the dream of spaceflight comes alive with a wall of sound, five-story screen and realistic 3D special effects. Dramatic footage shot by NASA Astronauts during actual missions will make you feel like you’re floating right alongside them.

ASTRONAUT TRAINING EXPERIENCE (ATX) TOUR

New at Kennedy Space Center ATX immerses you in the world of today’s Astronauts – an exciting combination of hands-on training and preparation for the rigors of spaceflight. You’ll hear first-hand from Veteran NASA Astronauts as you progress through an authentic day of mission simulation and exploration.

Kennedy Space Center Astronaut Training Experience Tour Ticket -- ATX immerses you in the world of today's Astronauts - an exciting combination of hands-on training and preparation for the rigors of spaceflight. You'll hear first-hand from Veteran NASA Astronauts as you progress through an authentic day of mission simulation and exploration.

Your training schedule provides a range of interactive activities, from the multi-axis trainer and the 1/6 gravity chair, to operating a full-scale Shuttle mock-up and taking the helm in Mission Control.

As part of your training, you'll take an exclusive tour of Kennedy Space Center. Stops include the Space Shuttle Launch Pads, the International Space Station Center and NASA's Press Site.

Train Like an Astronaut
Your training schedule provides a range of interactive activities, from the multi-axis trainer and the 1/6 gravity chair, to operating a full-scale Shuttle mock-up and taking the helm in Mission Control.

Length

7 to 8 hours

Time

9:15 am on selected Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays

Astronaut-In-Training Criteria

Mission participants must be 14 or older; participants under 18 must be accompanied by adult.

Includes ATX gear and lunch.

Lunch with Astronauts

One of the most popular programs at Kennedy Space Center, “Lunch with an Astronaut” gives visitors a one-of-a-kind experience to meet a member of NASA’s Astronaut Corps and get their autograph.