During our trip to Orlando, Florida, my husband and I made a pact with our daughter: we would brave the thrilling rides at Disney World on the condition we also visit the John F. Kennedy Space Center, located 89 kilometres away. If Disney churned our insides, Kennedy Space Center blew our minds. As one of NASA's 10 field centers, our experience was not just thrilling, but truly awe-inspiring.
Founded in 1962, the Kennedy Space Center has launched NASA astronauts from Neil Armstrong to Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams into space
The drive from Disneyland took us through a flat and swampy landscape, entirely devoid of anything notable. However, the overcast, foreboding sky added a sense of excitement to visiting a place rich with stories, unfathomable achievements, setbacks and hope.
Launchpad to space
Founded in 1962 as the Launch Operations Center, all manned missions in the US till date have been launched from here, including the most recent SpaceX Crew-10 mission that enabled astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams’s return to Earth.
The sprawling visitors’ Center, which opened in 1967, begins with a Rocket Garden. The open-air gallery exhibits actual rockets and a handful of mock-ups from in the early years of space exploration.
The Rocket Garden displays real rockets and mock-ups of older rockets Shutterstock
Following a helpful tip, we quickly moved through these initial exhibits and caught a shuttle to the Apollo/Saturn V Center. Along the way, we passed the enormous rectangular building called the Vehicle Assembly Unit (VAB). This is one of the largest single-storey buildings in the world, and sports the largest American flag on its exterior.
Standing in a control room or Firing Room, surrounded by screens and equipment that launched Apollo missions, we watched a video presentation which recreates what it was like on launch day. If that set our hearts racing, what came next blew our minds. Doors opened to reveal the Saturn V rocket displayed inside a cavernous hall. Walking under a rocket that has done 12 flights to space was thrilling beyond measure, but that was not all. We touched a piece of moon rock and saw the real Lunar Module 9 that landed on the moon.
The Apollo Saturn V Center Shutterstock
Back in the main building, next up on the tour was a tryst with Atlantis. After the Saturn V reveal, we expected to be surprised, but nothing could have prepared us for what came next. The space shuttle Atlantis is no ordinary shuttle. This piece of precision engineering ferried astronauts to space and back, making 33 flights in over 30 years. Displayed at a 43.21-degree angle, it’s made to look as if it’s undocked from the International Space Station. With over 60 interactive exhibits it is possible to spend over half a day or more learning how it operated from lift-off to landing.
The Atlantis spacecraft on display Shutterstock
Champions of space exploration
While all the science and engineering made us gasp with awe, what left a lasting impact were the stories of incredible courage and passion, of people who went on missions, and the thousands who made it possible from behind the scenes. I passed the opportunity to have my insides churned (yet again) at the space shuttle launch simulation and headed to the Forever Remembered gallery.
The poignant displays bring to light the stories of the 14 astronauts who perished on missions on orbiters Challenger and Columbia, through photographs, news clips from the day of the tragedies, personal objects and parts of the orbiters recovered later. Besides stirring emotions, the gallery underlines the tremendous sacrifice that venturing into the unknown demands.
One of the highlights of any visit is the opportunity to meet and interact with an actual astronaut. With a rotating roster, who you end up meeting is based entirely on chance. We couldn't believe our luck that the astronaut of the day was José Hernández. His was a life I knew, having watched an Amazon Prime biopic A Million Miles Away, based on Hernández’ journey to NASA. Like all astronauts, Hernández is a highly accomplished individual, but it’s his personal story and the odds he beat to achieve his goal that set him apart. The son of migrant farm workers, he moved with his family studying at different schools and started learning English at the age of 12. He was turned down by NASA 11 times over a three-year period for astronaut training. His story is about never giving up on one’s dreams, as improbable as they may sound.
The author and her family with astronaut Jose Hernández
A visit to Kennedy Space Center was a highlight of a month-long trip to the US, and to meet Hernández in person was a sweet surprise that just capped it all perfectly.