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.]] The U.S. Space and Rocket Center is a Museum designed to showcase the hardware of the U.S. space program. The idea was first proposed by Dr. Wernher Von Braun , while serving as director of the Marshall Space Flight Center . It is located in Huntsville, Alabama . It opened in 1970 after the U.S. Army donated land on its Redstone Arsenal . It houses more than 1,500 pieces of rocket and space hardware. The Center is located in the western part of the city of Huntsville, off an exit of Interstate 565 . Exhibits include:
The museum also features temporary rocketry- and space-related exhibits, interactive science exhibits, space-themed rides (such as Space Shot and G-Force Accelerator ), and one of the original IMAX theatres, the "Spacedome." United States Space Camp is located on the grounds of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, and Aviation Challenge is located nearby. For years, residents of Huntsville could point to the Saturn I in the center of the Space and Rocket Center as a distant landmark (the museum is located a few miles from the city center). In 1999, a model of the Saturn V was erected near the Saturn I, extending the reach of this unique form of landmark (the moon rocket is nearly twice as tall). The museum also features a Saturn V, which consists of various test stages used during the Apollo Program . This rocket lies on the ground, separated into its individual stages. A fundraising campaign is currently underway to repair this valuable space artifact, which has endured unforgiving southern weather for many years. replica at U.S. Space & Rocket Center.]] On May 7 , 2007 , A fire destroyed a bus maintenance facility at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. Some of the original equipment of the Saturn V rocket was stored there. The Center is also the final resting place of Miss Baker, a squirrel Monkey who flew on a suborbital test flight of the Jupiter rocket on May 28, 1959. Miss Baker died of kidney failure at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center on November 20, 1984. CURRENT CONSTRUCTION The center has begun construction on a new facility to house the authentic Saturn V rocket it has on display. The new building will house the rocket (currently being moved into the structure, and listed on the National Register Of Historic Places ) and a new visitors center. The Spacedome IMAX Theater has recently undergone renovations. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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