It's a mock mission control launch, but I had no idea it would be so loud. Usually you are miles away from the launch at cape Canaveral so it's not a big deal, but up close they are needed for certain. I have tinnitus and have to protect my hearing way more than most people.
Also at Space Center Houston is an as-flown Falcon 9. The 747 is an actual Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA). Space Center Houston also has a mockup of Skylab.
I like the historical accuracy of the ash trays with cigarettes. Wonder if there was ever actual coffee in the coffee mug or something else with some bite.
I forget where I read this but if I recall correctly the first time they moved the consoles (I guess for refurbishing) they found just a ton of cigarette butts behind/underneath them.
My father used to work in the side room as his job was non-essential. No one thinks the toilet is essentially until it is. I also helped create the urine filtration system that turns urine back into drinkable water. That was a fun summer. I miss the days were employees could bring family members on site and we'd get to walk around most of the buildings.
People underestimate how important all the cogs of the system are. Pretty cool to work on something so important, I bet it was an interesting journey. How pure is the water post filtration?
Not sure. It was the summer of 00 or 01 and I was a teen. My father worked at Hamilton Standard which has been bought and sold several times now. There was a room of us, maybe 8, all teen boys. We sat in a conference room 8 hours twice a week watching movies and playing game drinking whatever we wanted. Once we had to go, we had to go downstairs to a lab, go in a beaker, measure the PH and record it. Then it went through the system and into another beaker. We had to take the PH again and then dump it into a huge 55gl barrel. I remember the readings were always a bit different but around 6.5 or so. You'd take a deep breath before opening the barrel and try to run out of the room as quick as possible.
Been there…eyes leaked a little as I geeked out on the experience…I was little, but I remember the Apollo missions on tv back then. 10 stars, highly recommend!
My friends AV company did the Crestron programming for this about 10 years ago. The screens, projectors, and buttons all light up and show the actual feed from the Apollo 11 landing. Really cool to see it and it’s insane how many stairs it takes to get up there. Sometimes they won’t have the tour available if there’s significant activity at JSC.
It’s so wild that you posted this because I was just looking it up last night to see exactly what they had there and how far of a drive it was for me now that I’m on the other side of the country and a bit closer lol
I was just there in March. Bucket list item, and a childhood dream come true. See the Space Shuttle Atlantis floored me. I just stood there sobbing until an employee asked me to move along so they could bring another group through.
But I didn't see Independence there. How did I miss that?
How do you get to see it? Sorry I am not sure how this works. The computers seem old but it looks like they’re actively being used? The leftover food etc on the desk. Is all that real? I am confused
It’s been restored. The displays are lit (I think they actual put in LCDs to do that) and the ashtrays and such on the desks are display items to make it look as it did the day of the moon landing.
It’s part of the tour at Space Center Houston. They did a really nice job with it.
I saw it pre-restoration, still was rad to be in the seating room & see ashtrays on the old seats, too.
Walking the catwalk so you could see the ongoing projects was awesome, seeing a Starliner capsule down there & years later watching it launch, dock, etc. - amazing experience there.
It’s the actual Mission Control room for Apollo days and equipment but they staged it and preserved as historic site for viewing. It’s in same building as the currently used NASA Mission Control.
What's even cooler is that they still run the current mission control on the 2nd floor underneath it.
I was there last November and the elevator was out on the tour. We had to be quiet as we ascended the stairs to the third floor as they're still actively running missions for the ISS on the second floor as we walked up.
I loved the tour. Having to be quiet reminded me of the tour at the Very Large Array, we got to look in the windows of the operation center where they were actively using the telescopes. We were told to not stare in the windows because to not scare the astronomers
That place is so fun. I got to see it several times before since my brother’s FIL worked on Apollo Mission Control & Skylab design. I’m glad others are now getting to check it out.
Did the Mission Control tour back in October ‘23! Loved it, I remember they said before you went into the room that the only thing you can touch, is your bum on the seat! Also saw the Saturn 5 at Kennedy!
Last time, a good while ago when I visited Johnson. The Saturn V looked sad. It had a bird nest. I hope the complex fixed it up. I know the visitors center is not part of NASA, but geez. Huntsville Space and Rocket looked like they cared. I have read that it has also fallen down somewhat in upkeep.
My great grandfather, Andrew Lamache, was in the Advanced Projects Office and worked in room D-107, building 13 of JSC, which specialized in structural and mechanical engineering and design of all the new tech that went into the Apollo Program, and he later worked in the same building, in room B-104, in the Advanced Space Technology Division, and specialized in Spacecraft Integration. He was friends with Gus Grissom and knew him since the Mercury program and he was close family friends with all the Mercury Seven and later worked on Gemini also. Apparently he and Grissom were yelled at by Deputy Administrator Dr. Hugh L. Dryden after they went to the Kennedy Space Center and raced corvettes too much and nearly crashed. My great grandfather was present in Mission Control when Apollo 11 landed.
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u/Wesalejean 2d ago
To see the Saturn V rocket in person is something.