It’s Day 2 at Huntsville State Park. Tammy suggested we go to the Johnson Space Center since this will be the warmest day before a cold front moves in. Since we are expecting to spend quite a bit of time outside at the space center, this makes a lot of sense.
The Johnson Space Center is about 85 miles south of Huntsville State Park. To read our blog on Huntsville State Park, click here. It’s a pretty easy drive to the Space Center but since your going through Houston, you will want to avoid “rush hour”.
Welcome to the Johnson Space Center.
It’s a pretty impressive site when you get out of your vehicle and are greeted by the space shuttle. The Shuttle is an exact replica but the 747 is the actual Jet that transported it from Houston to Florida. You can tour both of these.
The ticket prices are $29.95 for adults under 65, and there are discounts available. For instance, we saved $5.00 per ticket with out AAA card. To see all the pricing at the Johnson Space Center click here.
Once you step inside the Space Center, you realize there is no way you are going to be able to see everything in just a few hours. Plan on spending the day here. They have a large food court and while the prices are a little high, it beats leaving and coming back. As soon as you arrive there is a kiosk just beyond the main desk where you can register for tours. We decided to register right away for the ” Mission Control Center Tour”. There is also a tour of the Astronaut training facilities which we will do the next time we visit.
The Mission Control tour is an hour long. You will board a tram that takes you past many of the space center buildings, and it is very informative. Once you arrive at the Mission control building you will need to climb 87 stairs to the control room; or you can take the elevator. The Control Room has been restored to the way it was during the Apollo Program. There is a video introduction by Flight Director Gene Kranz, and then you witness the control room operating just like it did during the moon landing.
Houston Control Center
After the Tour we watched a short film on the history of space flight. The film also paid tribute to the astronauts that were lost in the two Space Shuttle Tragedies. I found it odd that there was no mention of the Apollo One fire that claimed Grissom, White, and Chaffee. If not for the investigation that came out of that tragedy we would not have made it to the moon.
Next we toured the area that has the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo Capsules. This was my favorite part.
Gemini V Capsule
Mercury 9 Capsule
Apollo 17
To say all of this is impressive would be an understatement. But there is so much more! There are simulators, Sky Lab exhibit, a real Saturn V rocket, Films, Live Presentations, and much, much more. We were there about four hours and barely scratched the surface.
The Skylab Exhibit
I highly recommend a visit to the Johnson Space Center if you are in the area. However, as I mentioned before though, you should plan on spending the day!
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