You can’t see force, but you can feel it. To understand how the ISS stays up there, we need to know about forces. It took astronauts more than ten years to put it all together up in space! Why doesn’t the ISS fall down to Earth? It took 37 trips with NASA’s space shuttle to carry most of the pieces 350km above Earth – that’s about the same height as 3,850 football fields standing up on end. You can follow SPACE.Curious Kids: How big is the International Space Station? The crowds for viewing either of these launches will likely be some of the largest ever, so it never hurts to plan ahead. If this extra trip flies, it could be as early as June 2011. To be alerted when they open the lottery for the chance to buy passes, sign up here.Ī NASA authorization bill recently signed by President Obama approved one more flight by the shuttle Atlantis, though that mission must be allocated funding by Congress before it is officially on. NASA has not yet sold tickets for viewing that launch. NASA's shuttle Endeavour is currently scheduled to launch on its final mission to space in April 2011. It's just amazing, especially if it's your once-in-a-lifetime experience."Īnd if you can't make it to the upcoming launch of Discovery, you still have one - and maybe two - more shots. "I hope that whether or not they have a ticket to Kennedy Space Center - please don't miss out on the opportunity. "We want as many people as possible to have the opportunity to see a space shuttle launch," Farmer said. No matter where you choose to watch from, the experience should be memorable. Bringing snacks and games for the long day is a good idea, as well as blankets and chairs, and - of course - a camera. Parking is likely to be tight all over Titusville, with landowners near the Indian River tending to rent out parking spots on launch day for a small fee. No matter where you choose to camp out, getting there early is a good idea.įor afternoon launches, for example, you should bet on arriving at your spot in the morning, at least six hours ahead, Cooper said. Other good spot recommendations, as well as photos taken from the various launch sites, are offered on Cooper's space shuttle viewing site here. To get a little bit off the (extremely) well-beaten path, viewers can head to Cape Canaveral and Port Canaveral, where cruise ships dock. Other good viewing locations in Titusville include Parrish Park, on the Max Brewer Causeway between Titusville and Kennedy Space Center. "There really isn't any place to go to get away from the crowds." "It's definitely going to be mobbed in that spot," Cooper said. This spot also tends to get the most crowded, though. Space View Park has the added benefit of an audio feed that plays the official NASA countdown, so people gathered at the site can stay updated on the launch status, Cooper said.įarmer herself said she'd watched many a launch from Space View Park before she went to work for NASA. "I would definitely say go to Titusville - that's the best view and the closest view you can get without having tickets," said Ben Cooper, a space photographer for NASA and other media outlets. One of the most popular locations is Space View Park in Titusville, Fla., just across the Indian River from Kennedy Space Center. Opportunities abound for good viewing beyond the spaceport. "It's the fairest system that we were able to put together for this," Farmer told .īut for those without coveted NASA tickets, fear not. People first had to register for a chance to buy tickets to these locations, and then names were randomly selected from the list to purchase the passes. Astronaut Hall of Fame, was so large NASA instituted a new ticket-selling policy for this final launch of Discovery, Farmer said. In fact, the number of people clamoring for spots on the NASA Causeway, as well as at the visitor center itself and the nearby U.S. "The demand far outweighs the supply," said Andrea Farmer, public relations manager at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. However, if you don't already have tickets for the causeway, you're out of luck: They've been sold out for months, since before the shuttle's initial launch date last November (the liftoff was delayed when cracks were discovered on the shuttle's fuel tank). NASA sells adult tickets for viewing from the causeway for $59 ($49 for children), which provides an unobstructed view over the Banana River. The best launch-viewing spot available to the public is on the NASA Causeway, about 6 miles (9.6 km) from the shuttle's Launch Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
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