I got my Geek on at Johnson Space Center! It takes me back to my childhood, all the NASA stuff! My bedroom as a kid was full of pictures and souvenirs from the Apollo and early Space Shuttle days. I wrote to NASA and received packages full of pictures from them. Pictures of Rockets, Astronauts, Space shuttles, Space Stations, Launches, and more decorated my walls.
If you have a fascination with space or space travel then this is a must-see!
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Location
1601 NASA Parkway, Houston, TX 77058-3145
While on the first tram, we passed the new lunar rover at a stoplight. The tour guide said it was rare to see it out driving around.
The 363 ft. Saturn V Rocket is massive! I thought it was going to be the highlight of the day. But on the second tour, we got to go to the Apollo Mission Control Center! What an unexpected thrilling place! I thought we’d just go in and get a look, but that is not the case.
This is the facility where NASA monitored nine Gemini and all Apollo lunar missions, including the historic Apollo 11 trip to the Moon and the final Apollo 17 trip to the same lunar body. It is located in Building 30 of NASA Johnson Space Center.
The fully remodeled Apollo-era control center is smaller than it looked on television. You sit in the actual VIP seating used by the astronaut’s families during space flights. They then play a presentation that brings the control center to life during the first moon landing of July 20, 1969. As you watch you feel like you’re actually there that day with the working monitors and displays. The mission control center looks like it did that day complete with ashtrays full of cigarettes, manuals, and papers laying on the desks. It’s one of the coolest historical experiences we’ve done in our travels.
To wrap it up we toured the Space Shuttle mockup of Independence on top of its 747 transport plane. It was interesting to see the interior of a Space Shuttle. This is the only place you can do that. The other three Space Shuttles can only be viewed from the outside. This being a mockup they allow more access.
We were surprised by how small the cockpit was.
The Space Shuttle Cargo Bay was cool with its CanadArm.
Space Shuttle Crew Living Space with lockers.
Sleeping Bag on the Space Shuttle.
It was a great day!
Conclusion
If you’re a space geek like me or just have a curiosity about space travel, Space Center Houston at Johnson Space Center is someplace you are going to want to visit. There is so much to see and do here that one day may not be enough.
What interesting places have you been to and can recommend? We’re always looking for neat out-of-the-way places to put on our list of must-sees. Thank you for reading our article. If you have any comments or questions we’d love to hear from you below.
