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Cape Canaveral (''Cabo Cañaveral'' in Spanish ) is a strip of land in Brevard County, Florida , United States , near the center of that state's Atlantic coast. It is part of a region known as the Space Coast , and is the site of the Kennedy Space Center , and the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station . Most United States Spacecraft are launched from either one of these sites. It sits due east of Merritt Island , separated from it by the Banana River . In addition to the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral is the site of an air force base and the Cape Canaveral Lighthouse . Port Canaveral and the city of Cape Canaveral are a few miles south of the cape. The first rocket launch from the Cape was Bumper 8 from Launch Pad 3 on 24 July , 1950 . On February 6 , 1959 the first successful test firing of a Titan Intercontinental Ballistic Missile was accomplished here. All manned U.S. Spaceflight s have launched from Cape Canaveral. Cape Canaveral was chosen for rocket launches to take advantage of the earth's Rotation . The Centrifugal Force of this rotation is greatest at the Equator , and to take advantage of it, rockets are launched eastward, in the same direction. It is also highly desirable to have the downrange area sparsely populated, in case of accidents; an ocean is ideal for this. Although the United States has sites closer to the equator with expanses of ocean to the east of them (e.g. Hawaii , Puerto Rico ), the east coast of Florida has substantial logistical advantages over these island locations. NAME CHANGES From 1963 to 1973 it was called Cape Kennedy. President John F. Kennedy was an enthusiastic backer of the space program, and after his assassination in 1963 , his widow Jacqueline Kennedy suggested to President Lyndon Johnson that renaming the Cape Canaveral facility would be an appropriate memorial. However, Johnson recommended the renaming not just of the facility, but of the entire cape. Accordingly, Cape Canaveral Was Renamed Cape Kennedy. Although the name change was approved by the United States Board On Geographic Names of the Interior Department in 1964 , it was not popular in Florida , especially in the ''city'' of Cape Canaveral, Florida . In 1973 the state passed a law restoring the former 400-year-old name, and the Board went along. The Kennedy Family issued a letter stating they "understood the decision"; Jacqueline Kennedy also stated if she had known that the Canaveral name had existed for 400 years, she never would have supported changing the name of the Cape. The Space Center itself retains the "Kennedy" name. NAME ORIGIN The name "Canaveral" ''(Cañaveral'' in Spanish ) was given to the area by Spanish explorers, and it literally means " Canebrake ". It can be interpreted as "Cape of Canes". TRIVIA In '' The Simpsons '' episode " Deep Space Homer ", a fictitious sign shows its pre-Canaveral name as Cape Arbuckle , with the implication that its latest name change reflects the Kennedy name falling from favour. Alternately, the Simpsons is lampooning the repeated changes by suggesting that fashion has dictated yet another name for the Cape. EXTERNAL LINKS
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