Vehicle Assembly Building

The VAB viewed from the NASA parkway

The Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) is an iconic industrial building at the John F. Kennedy Space Center. It's designed to assemble pre-made rocket stages, spacecraft and related parts vertically onto a mobile launch platform. The Saturn V, Space Shuttle and Ares-I rockets have been assembled in the VAB, and the upcoming Space Launch System in late 2020.

Construction began in 1963, and was completed in 1966. It is 160 metres (525 feet) tall (716 feet (218.2 m) long and 518 feet (157.9 m) wide), made from aproximately 100,000 tons of steel, and contains 3,665,000 m³ of internal volume.

The VAB has four large assembly areas called high bays, with one huge central aisle where the rocket parts are loaded in.

The Launch Control Center is adjascent to the side of the building, with a walkway connecting both buildings. The NASA logo and American flags are the largest painted facades in the world.

Vehicle Assembly Building Media

VAB during construction (1965) with the three Mobile Launchers for the Saturn V rocket.
A crane lowers Discovery toward the ET and SRBs in high bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building for STS-124.
VAB in 1977, with the Bicentennial Star opposite the flag. The Bicentennial Star was painted over with the NASA insignia in 1998. Note the Space Shuttle Landing Facility at upper left.
Repair work after Hurricane Frances
Discovery in the Vehicle Assembly Building waiting for a ferry flight to Dulles, Virginia, for permanent display at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.
Aerial view of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in 2011
Overview of the VAB and LCC industrial area
Endeavour on its way into the VAB during the launch preparations for STS-89. At the top of the doorway is the slot for the vertical stabilizer.
The VAB as viewed from the nearby parking lot, 19 January 2022