Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) is a spaceport in Merritt Island, Florida, USA. It is one of the ten main locations of NASA.Since December 1968, Kennedy Space Center has been the main launch center of human spaceflight of the United States. It borders on the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which helps the Space Center.
| John F. Kennedy Space Center | |
|---|---|
 Top to bottom, left to right: Vehicle Assembly Building, Space Shuttle Endeavour on Pad 39A, Shuttle Landing Facility, KSC Headquarters Building, Launch Control Center, and the Visitor Complex | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | KSC |
| Formation | July 1, 1962 |
| Type | NASA facility |
| Location | Merritt Island, Florida |
| Official languages | English |
| Director | Robert D. Cabana |
| Deputy director | Janet E. Petro |
| Budget | US$350 million |
| Website | www |
Facilities
There are about 700 facilities and buildings in the 580 square kilometers (144,000 acres) of KSC.[1] The unique facilities of KSC are the 160-metre (525 ft) tall "Vehicle Assembly Building", the Launch Complex 39 (39A, 39B and 39C), the 5-kilometer (3-mile) long "Shuttle Landing Facility", the 4-storey tall "Launch Control Center", and the "Visitor Complex".
Vehicle Assembly Building
The Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) is the largest building at KSC. It assemble large rockets, for example the Saturn V and the Space Shuttle. The future rocket Space Launch System (SLS) will also be assembled there.
Launch Complex 39
The Launch Complex 39 (LC-39) is a rocket launch facility of KSC. The site was originally made for the Apollo program. Later, it was modified for the Space Shuttle program. As of 2017[update], only Pad 39A is in use to launch SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy. Pad 39B is modifying for NASA's Space Launch System. The Pad 39C was added in 2015 for small rocket launches, although it is not in use.
Shuttle Landing Facility
The Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) is an airport of KSC. It was used for landing of the Space Shuttle until 2011. It is also used for take offs and landings for NASA airplanes, for example the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft and some civilian airplanes.[2][3]
Launch Control Center
The Launch Control Center (LCC) is a building at KSC. It controls the rocket launches from Launch Complex 39.
Factories
Several factory buildings are on-site at KSC, for the manufacture and processing of space station components. They include the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF), and the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building (O&C).
Visitor Complex
The Visitor Complex is the visitor center of KSC. It has exhibits and displays, historic spacecraft and memorabilia, movies, and a bus tour of the KSC. As of 2016[update], about 1,700,000 people visited the center.
Total launches
| Launch vehicles | Launches |
|---|---|
| Saturn V | 12
|
| Space Shuttle | 98
|
| Falcon 9 | 15
|
| Falcon Heavy | 3
|
| Launch vehicles | Launches |
|---|---|
| Saturn V | 1
|
| Saturn IB | 4
|
| Space Shuttle | 37
|
| Ares I | 1
|
Related pages
References
- ↑ "Kennedy Creating New Master Plan". NASA. March 12, 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ↑ NASA (2007). "Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF)". NASA. Retrieved November 7, 2007.
- ↑ NASA (2007). "Shuttle Landing 101". NASA. Retrieved November 7, 2007.