Facts about Kennedy Space Center
- 09
Merritt Island, Florida, is the location of Kennedy Space Center, which was established in 1962 and serves as NASA's primary launch facility.
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Crawler-transporters at Kennedy Space Center each weigh 2,750 tons and can carry 18 million pounds while traveling at 0.6 miles per hour across the crawlerway to launch pads.
- 07
Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center underwent a $300 million modernization from 2015 to 2019 to support both Space Launch System missions and commercial heavy-lift rockets.
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Kennedy Space Center's Space Shuttle Main Engines could reach temperatures of 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit, hotter than the surface of the Sun.
- 05
Saturn V rockets launched from Kennedy Space Center required 15 million pounds of thrust to escape Earth's gravity, making them the most powerful operational rockets ever built.
- 04
Approximately 13.3 million gallons of water are used daily at Kennedy Space Center for cooling systems, launch pad operations, and facility maintenance.
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Over 450,000 people work at Kennedy Space Center and surrounding facilities on Florida's Space Coast, supporting launch operations and spacecraft development programs.
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In 1969, Apollo 11 launched from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A on July 16, carrying Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the Moon.
- 01
The Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center spans 525 feet long, 442 feet wide, and 363 feet tall, making it one of the largest single-story structures by volume in the world.