One week before the last space shuttle launch, we arrived at Kennedy Space Center in a large, large group (about 300 adults and children). The first stop for our exciting day was the Space Shuttle IMAX movie. The movie is narrated by Tom Cruise and through special effects of IMAX 3D allows viewers to join the Space Station astronauts as they live, work, and adapt in space. The movie shows, in detail, the work that goes into preparing for a flight to space and what happens once the astronauts are on missions. It shows how they sleep, eat, bathe, work, etc. The movie also explains why they are building the space station and the importance of space exploration. It is an informative movie and interest is maintained throughout.
From the theater we made our way to the Space Shuttle Plaza. We walked through "Explorer" a full scale replica of the space shuttle by the same name. This is basically a view of the inside of a space shuttle. Then on to the Shuttle Launch Experience, which is a very mild simulation of a shuttle flight. It's okay to do once.
We strolled through the Rocket Garden and took fabulous photos of historic rockets. Afterwards, we had a very costly lunch and the children played in the Children's Play Dome.
Since this was an educational experience, we attended a class for the children about the Space Shuttle program in the Center for Space Education. The teacher explained that the shuttle will be retired because the technology is obsolete and they need to develop other vehicles for space travel. According to her, the space program will continue, however, will be changing along with the times and improved technology. During the class the children also learned about the components required for a space shuttle to take flight and land. The students made shuttles of their own. Once the models were done, we went outside and launched them.
Although the park is not huge there are several exhibits to see. Some of the exhibits we did not see were:
Hubble 3D movie, Star Trek Live, Exploration Space: Explorers Wanted, Eye on the Universe: the Hubble Space Telescope, Astronaut Encounter, Early Space Exploration, Launch Status center, Astronaut Memorial, and Robot Scouts.
The experience was very positive and enjoyable for all.
