The Cape!

So. How cool is the KSC you ask? Well for Both CG and I it stands out as a Highlight of our trip. Aside from Breaking bread and Chillin’ with our fun and wacky Floridian Comrades, I think that the things I will most remember are the KSC and the WONDERFUL smell of Orange Blossoms filling the “Wet Sponge” driving home on a warm Florida evening. Magic.

KSC was about an hour drive from the Floridians home. My one regret is that we didn’t get on our way a bit earlier so that we could have had a bit more time there. Next time.

Most of the tours and Visitor centres are dedicated to the NASA “glory years” of the space race, and the Apollo missions. That suited me fine, as that is the period that is most interesting to me. Even almost 40 years out, I think that the Apollo missions are a true technological wonder. The scale of all thing involved is truly enormous. The Giant Vehicle Assemble building, the enormous Crawlers used to transport the unbelievable Saturn V. It’s incredible to think that all that was created with 1960’s technology, and is a feat that we could not replicate today. Of course, we could replicate it, if it was funded as well as Apollo was….

I can’t criticize US Govt space spending, as I strongly believe (as an outsider looking in), that as a nation they have more pressing concerns. However, it is worth noting that in 1969, when men were walking on the moon, Space exploration accounted for approx 0.3% of US GDP. In the same year, when the US was losing an unpopular war in Vietnam, US military expenditures accounted for 3% of GDP.

Anyway, the tours were awesome, and I look forward to shelling out a bit more next time for the “Up Close” tour. Apparently you need a reservation for that one.