The day I visited the Kennedy Space Center I took the Cape Canaveral: Then And Now Tour which takes an in-depth look around the whole Cape Canaveral facility visiting many of the launch complexes which were at the heart of the space race from the 1950's through to the Mercury and Gemini Projects through to the conclusion of the Apollo program.

The tour starts from the Visitors Complex where you board a tour-coach with a friendly and knowledgeable guide named Jack describing all of the sites and historical backgrounds to everything you will see.

The tour is split into three parts:

• Cape Canaveral Air Station

A tour of all the interesting launch sites and other landmarks on the facility

• The Saturn-V Center

An in-depth look at the race for the moon and the chance to see all the hardware up-close and personal

• The International Space Station

A chance to see it for real while it's still on the ground

Wildlife Nature Reserve

As you leave the Visitor Center you learn that the whole facility is located inside the Merritt Island Wildlife Nature Reserve with a wide variety of protected animals. The 84,000-acre site belongs to the animals, and NASA respects that and is proud to share the facility while helping to protect the creatures who call the place home.

All around the facility you have no idea what you'll see next, from an Alligator sunning itself on the Shuttle Landing Runway, to an Armadillo (a cross between a Rat and a tank!) crossing the car park. There's the odd Snake watching from the bushes or swimming in one of the drainage channels to Pelicans flying from tree to tree. There is even a pair of mating Southern Bald Eagles who return every year to nest in the same tree to try to rear a chick.

When it comes to the animals, we are warned to look but don't touch. We must not approach the animals as it is illegal to interfere with them. Cape Canaveral is a Federal Facility and is protected with hundreds of cameras and microphones, and members of the public could even get arrested for interfere with the animals. That's not to mention that some animals can be dangerous, but if you keep away from them, they'll keep away from you.

Because this is a Federal Facility, we are also warned not to make threats of a terrorist nature; not even jokingly. The authorities apparently don't take it at all lightly and you can get into a lot of trouble - just like at an airport. Our guide says we ought to be a bit careful about how we greet him: Saying "Hi Jack" could be mis-interpreted!

Cape Canaveral

As we head for our first destination, we drive past a number of buildings: Operations & Checkout is where astronauts are kept in quarantine before a flight. It is also where a lot of development and preparation work goes on to prepare experiments and equipment to be launched into space. It was built originally for the Apollo Project, but serves almost an identical role today for the crews and equipment used on the Space Shuttle. We don't take a look around those facilities on this tour, but on the NASA: Up Close tour you get to see a lot more of these places.

When was the first rocket launched from here? The first rocket to be launched from Cape Canaveral was a captured German V-2 rocket named "Bumper 8", modified for testing. It first flew on 24 July, 1950. At that time the launch facilities existed under the name Merritt Island Launch Annex, which was part of the Cape Canaveral Air Station operated by the 45th Space Wing of the U.S. Air Force.

NASA's Headquarters buildings are just nearby, too, where various administrative work gets done. And just next-door is the Space Station Processing Facility where the various International Space Station modules are being prepared for launch on a number of Space Shuttle missions. We'll visit that at the very end of the tour.

Air Force Space and Missile Museum

Explorer 1 - America's First Satellite

Explorer 1/Juno Local Copy

Our first port of call will be Launch Complex 26, which is now the location of the Air Force Space and Missile Museum where a lot of the first space-rockets were launched from in the early days of NASA. In the middle of the Cold War with Russia, the Russian Military launched the first man-made satellite into Earth orbit, "Sputnik", on 4 October, 1957.

When was NASA formed? NASA was formed on 1 October, 1958.

It was from this site that NASA launched its reply: Explorer 1. It was sent up three months later, on 31 January, 1958, from Pad B at Launch Complex 26 atop a Jupiter-C or Juno rocket.

Mercury Redstone - First American in Space

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MR-3 Launch Local copy

Alan B. Shepard Local copy

Russian Yuri Gagarin was sent into Orbit on 12 April, 1961 in his "Vostok I" capsule.

America found itself still playing catch-up with the Russians, but they had closed the gap. They were able to reply quickly this time, so Alan B. Shepard, was launched into space atop the Mercury Redstone III rocket from this Launch Complex only three weeks later, on May 5, 1961, aboard his single-seat Freedom 7 Mercury Capsule.

We arrive at Launch Complex 26, which is now the site of the Air Force Space and Missile Museum. There are a wide variety of displays in a Rocket Garden across the whole complex, with Rockets, Capsules and Missiles all on display for the public to view. I headed straight into the actual Launch Control Blockhouse for the two launch-pads which is open to the public. Our guide explained a lot about the whole complex.

Launch Control Blockhouse

Computers

Computers

Computers

Computers

Computers

When you enter the Blockhouse, you enter the right-hand side Firing Room for Launch Pad B. All of its original equipment, comprising all of the vacuum-tube computer systems and bread-board wiring has been restored to its original specifications and is incredible to see in-situ.

The building itself is a Four Feet thick steel re-enforced concrete structure, with a six to eight foot thick curved ceiling to protect occupants from near-ground-zero blast should a rocket explode on a nearby Launch Pad. It was constructed to be airtight when the big thick steel doors are closed to protect people from toxic fumes in an explosion.

A fairly serious design flaw, however, was thankfully never put to the test - the toilets were not within the airtight facility itself, they were the other side of the think steel doors!

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This is the actual place Explorer 1 and Mercury Redstone 3 were launched from, although the launch pad for Mercury Redstone is on the other side of the complex and is fairly difficult to see from here.

Windows

Launch Pad

At the end of the room, facing the launch pad (only about 150m away) are a pair of very thick glass windows, tinted bluey-green because of their thickness. Each is 15-ply 1/4" glass making a total of nearly 4" thick. A Mercury Capsule and a Mercury Redstone Rocket and Gantry are sat on the launch pad for you to view from here.

This was the last Blockhouse which used direct-view glass windows. It was deemed unsafe as the rockets started to get larger and larger. A Periscope system was used later, and then even that was replaced by video surveillance systems.

Computers

Computers

Computers

Tape Writer

On the other side of the building is Firing Room A, used for Launch Pad A. It is slightly more modern, utilising Punched Tape Reels containing all of the computer data to be used. Again, this room has been restored to its original condition and is preserved for posterity. There is even the original emergency Tape Punching machine used if there were errors in the programming!

When you finish looking around these Firing Rooms you can have a look at part of the history of that era of space flight. Explanations of the Explorer 1 launch are detailed on displays on the wall and in display cabinets.

Astrochimp Capsule

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HAM

ENOS

An Astrochimp capsule is also on display. This capsule was used to launch a Chimpanzee named HAM into space atop a Redstone rocket to make sure it was a safe trip for humans. He too, was launched from this complex.

ENOS, another Astrochimp, was also launched into space, but Launch Complex 14 aboard a Mercury Atlas rocket.

Capsule Panel

These Astrochimps had serious work to do though. It wasn't a free ride for them at all. They were trained to press buttons and pull levers if they was coloured lights in their capsules flashing. If they did it correctly, they got a snack. If they were wrong they got a small electric shock in their fingertip.

By doing this, NASA were able to prove that it was possible to actual work in zero-G and accomplish tasks in space, not just to simply survive up there. That knowledge proved very valuable in the Mercury Project.

Museum

Kettering Bug

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In the adjacent building is a small Museum presenting the history of all of the projects Cape Canaveral has been involved with over the years, from the first attempt at a Guided Missile; the 1918 "Kettering Bug", a small bi-plane bomb. There are a lot of items of interest here on display.

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V2 Rocket Engine

Re-entry Vehicle

There is an original rocket engine from a German V-2 bomb on display here, along with a large array of Re-entry Vehicles which provided NASA with useful data on how materials were affected by re-entry. Most of the units on display have been used and some show even significant signs of damage from their ordeals.

Mighty Mouse

Launcher

A display fills two large walls showing a selection of Missiles in use around the world today. There are some Sidewinder and Phoenix Air-to-Air Missiles, some Mighty Mouse and Maverick Air-to-Ground incendiary missiles, a Patriot Ground-to-Air Anti-Missile Missile and there are even some Polaris and Poseidon Submarine-launched missiles on display and models of how they were integrated aboard their subs. All of these missiles were developed here at Cape Canaveral.

Around the corner, in the next room, is a Range Safety Officer's Console which was the console where a missile was self-destructed from should it veer from its intended course too much.

Submarine

There is a cut-away model of a nuclear submarine which was designed to launch Polaris and later Poseidon missiles - a number of which are outside in the Rocket Garden.

A number of maps here show why the Cape was such a good choice for launching missiles and rockets from. Our guide explained how the Bahamas islands, under British control, were very useful in tracking missiles and rockets and how being so close to the equator helped boost rockets into space.

Display Models

Display Models

In the final room of the museum is a large display with models of all of the Launch Vehicles which have flown from here. It is quite a display to see all the variants of Delta rockets, against all the Titan's through to the Saturn-V and the Shuttle.

Gemini II Capsule

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Inside

Heatshield

Heat Damage

Also here is the actual Gemini Capsule used in the Gemini II mission.

This capsule came back in such good condition after it's first mission that it was used again in a later mission - this is the only Mercury, Gemini or Apollo capsule to go into space twice.

Launch Pad 5

Pad 5

You leave the museum building itself at Launch Complex 26 by coach and go just a quarter of a mile up the road to Launch Complex 5 - part of the museum grounds - where both Mercury Redstone III and Mercury Redstone IV actually launched from, carrying Alan B. Shepard into space on May 5, 1961, and Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom on 21 July, 1961.

A decommissioned Redstone rocket now stands alone in the center of the pad as a memorial to that historic flight.

Museum Rocket Garden

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Rocket Garden

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Outside the two buildings are the two Launch Pads. These are now used to display a large number of space-related vehicles and missiles.

On the right-hand Launch Pad there is a Mercury Redstone rocket inside a Gantry Tower just as had been done for Alan Shepard and Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom's flights in 1961.

Gantry

Gantry

The Gantry is interesting in its own right: NASA at that time knew very little about tall steel structures like that, so they went to experts in the Oil drilling business and built an oil-rig tower around a Redstone rocket. This tower is what they got. It is the original one standing in place of honour today.

Mercury Capsule

Apollo Capsule

Gemini Capsule

On the far side of the complex, over near the Mercury Redstone Gantry are a couple of Static-Drop Capsules. A Mercury, a Gemini and an Apollo are on display. These are not capsules which flew with men in, rather they were drop-tested to ensure that they could survive the process before men were ever put inside. All three of these on display have been used in this fashion.

Thor-Able Rocket

Thor Rocket

2 Thor Rockets

Over on the other Launch Pad there are a couple of Thor rockets - the fore-runner to the Boeing Delta family of rockets, one with an Able nosecone standing on the left-hand Launch Pad A without a Gantry and another lying down flat on the far side of the complex without a nose-cone.

Titan-I 1st Stage

Titan-I Rocket

All across the complex are scattered a lot of other hardware, such as the Titan-I Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capable of carrying a 10 mega-ton warhead to the former U.S.S.R. during the cold war.

Polaris

Polaris & Poseidon

There are Polaris Submarine-launched nuclear missiles and their more modern counterparts, the Poseidon missile.

Agena Nosecones

Minuteman Missile

There are even Agena Nosecones here.

These two on display have rocket motors in them, and would be used atop an unmanned launch vehicle, such as an Atlas or Titan rocket as upper-stages to get payloads into higher orbits.

LC-17 Delta-II

Of interest, you get a pretty good view from here across to the neighboring Launch Complex 17 where there are two Launch Pads launching Delta-II rockets currently.

Challenger

R.I.P.

Challenger

We left Launch Complex 5/6 and headed towards our next rendezvous. On the way we saw the resting place for the Space Shuttle Challenger. When the recovery process was complete after scouring the seabed for all the remains of the Orbiter around 85% of the Shuttle was recovered.

When all the investigations were complete and all the analysis had been done on the remains, the whole lot was gathered-up near to the Museum site and placed into a bunker. A 27-ton steel lid was placed over it and welded shut in memory of the seven astronauts who lost their lives in the tragic explosion.

Their names are remembered on the Space Mirror monument at the Visitors Complex

The Lighthouse

LC-17 Delta-II

Just before reaching the Cape Canaveral Lighthouse we stopped the coach to take another look at the two active Launch Pads at Launch Complex 17.

This is where Delta-II rockets are currently launched.

These unmanned launch vehicles are usually used for medium-sized military and commercial payloads going into orbit around the Earth.

Later in the tour, we'll see where the new Delta-IV are going to be launched from in 2002.

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Cape Canaveral has had a lighthouse on this site for a long time protecting seafarers from the running ashore.

This is the original lighthouse, but not the original glass dome. The lighthouse is being maintained by volunteer staff at the Museum.

The original glass dome is at the entrance to Launch Complex 5/6 and is in the process of being restored so it can one day take its rightful place again.

Mercury Monument

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The original launch-site, Launch Complex 14, where John Glenn took-off to become the first American to orbit the Earth was, sadly, not open to the public when I visited late in 2000. At the gate however a permanent memorial stands to all 6 of the Mercury Project Astronauts who flew from here and back at Launch Complex 5/6.

Their achievement provided America with the impetus needed to get a man to the Moon and their efforts will always be remembered here with this silvery shrine.

Gemini-Titan Memorial

We left the Mercury Monument and headed on towards our next stop, but before we got there we had a good opportunity to see Launch Complex 36 where modern Atlas rockets are launched.

LC-36 Atlas Centaur

This is one of the two Launch Pads here at Launch Complex 36.

The last launch from here, prior to my visit, was an Atlas Centaur rocket using Russian RV-180 engines carrying a French payload into Earth orbit. It was a commercial launch, not a military one and demonstrates well just how the space program is becoming a well-integrated multi-national business.

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Our next stop on the tour was at the entrance to Launch Complex 19, where all 10 manned Gemini flights took place.

Sadly, again, this site did not appear open to the public and there was no big Monument to take photos of.

From the confines of the coach, we could see the placard bearing all of the names of the Gemini Astronauts and the dates they flew.

One name amongst them was striking. A certain Neil Armstrong flew on Gemini-VIII. He would go on to do a lot more in the Apollo Project.

I did feel that more should have been made of Launch Complex 19 because of the enormous role Gemini played in getting to the Moon.

Launch Complex 34 - Apollo 1 & Apollo 7 - Saturn-1B

First View

Aerial View Local Copy

Apollo 1 Fire Local Copy

Apollo 1 Fire Local Copy

Our next major stop was the very moving site where the crew of Apollo 1 lost their lives during a full dress-rehearsal for their launch.

Astronauts Lt. Col. Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, Lt. Col. Edward H. White and Lt. Cmdr. Roger B. Chaffe. The fire took place on 27 January, 1967.

As a sign of respect, everybody was asked to remove hats and caps in memory of the crew of Apollo 1.

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Small Plaque

Visiting Launch Complex 34 gives you a real feeling for just how dangerous the space business can be. The Saturn-1B rocket directly stood above this ring of concrete, supported by a gigantic steel gantry tower, which has long-since been removed. Atop this rocket was the small three-manned capsule where the fire took place.

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Looking up into the ring, you can see the steel tubes which would have carried the thousands of gallons of water used to cool the structure during the actual lift-off. The water also served a second purpose; it was found that it suppressed the very powerful sound waves of the engines significantly. And that feature is utilised to this day on the Space Shuttle launch pads.

Apollo VII Local Copy

As testified by the single enormous charred flame bucket on the site, this site saw launches of unmanned Saturn-1 and Saturn-1B rockets. A single launch of a manned Saturn-1B rocket. Apollo-VII was launched successfully from here on 11 October, 1968.