America’s gateway to the universe. Leading the world in preparing and launching missions to Earth and beyond.

January 16, 1998

John F. Kennedy Space Center

Vol. 37, No.1

Center Director’s Holi-day Message

KSC employees invited toKSC employees invited toKSC employees invited toKSC employees invited toKSC employees invited tovisit new tour attractionsvisit new tour attractionsvisit new tour attractionsvisit new tour attractionsvisit new tour attractions

Explorer I catapulted U.S.into space age 40 years ago

The gates ofheaven areopening,” thePacific Rocket

Society telegraphed the ArmyBallistic Missile Agency(ABMA) after the successfullaunch of the first U.S.satellite, Explorer I, on Jan.31, 1958.

Explorer I was launched ona Jupiter-Claunchvehicle just70 feet tall,less thanhalf theheight of theSpaceShuttle. Thepayload itself was adiminutive 80 inches long andsix inches in diameter. ButExplorer I made up insturdiness what it lacked insize. It transmitted data backto Earth for four months, and

remained inorbit until 1970.Its 20 pounds ofscientificinstrumentsdiscovered the Van Allenradiation belt around Earth.

Most important, it boostednational morale and placed theAmerican space program on apositive footing.

Thecountry’simage hadbeen dealta majorblow withthe Soviets’launch ofthe first

artificial satellite, Sputnik, onOct. 4, 1957. The first U.S.attempt to launch a satelliteas part of the InternationalGeophysical Year was ahumiliating failure witnessedby the world. On Dec. 6, 1957— just a month after theSoviets had sent up Sputnik-2carrying the dog Laika — theU.S. Navy’s Vanguard launchvehicle topped by a three-pound satellite rose a pathetictwo feet off the pad, thensettled back down andexploded.

NASA didn’t even exist yet:Explorer I was launched bythe Army Ballistic MissileAgency (ABMA).

With Vanguard unable todeliver, the ABMA crowd that

(See EXPLORER, Page 6 )

Spaceport News

included Werhner von Braunand future KSC Director KurtDebus got the signal to pressahead with the Jupiter-Ccarrying the Explorer I.

It was a launch that almostdidn’t happen.

In a vivid account of thefinal moments inside theblockhouse at Complex 26 onCape Canaveral, then-PublicInformation Officer GordonHarris recounted that atignition minus 1 minute, 40seconds, it was reported that ajet vane deflection had

The KSC Visitor Complexextends a special invitation toKSC employees to experiencetwo new tour attractions at thespace center.

One site, the LaunchComplex 39 ObservationGantry, is located in the heartof the LC 39 area. The second,the International SpaceStation Center, is locatedadjacent to the Space StationProcessing Facility in the KSCIndustrial Area. The

attractions will officially openJan. 16 during a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Details of the specialinvitation are as follows:

• The free bus tours arebeing offered to employees theweekend of Jan. 17, 18 and 19,a three-day federal holidayweekend in honor of Dr.Martin Luther King’s birthday.

• Each KSC employee may

(See TOUR, Page 6)

CLOCKWISE from above — The Jupiter-C launch vehicle awaits liftoff at LaunchComplex 26. The press was advised on aconfidential basis about the impendinglaunch under an agreement that theycould not go public with the story until therewas ”fire in the tail,” according to a 1983press release on the launch’s 25thanniversary. The Jupiter-C was erected atthe pad in darkness, and canvas shroudswere draped from the service tower priorto launch day to conceal the vehicle. Photoat lower left did not have an official caption,but appears to show a technician with theExplorer I spacecraft. At upper left is theblockhouse; middle above, members ofthe Firing Laboratory below the vehiclestack at the pad, including Kurt Debus atright. At center, a congratulatory telegramfrom Walt Disney to the launch team onthe successful mission.

SATELLITEinstrumentationfor Explorer Iwas providedby Dr. JamesVan Allen ofthe StateUniversity ofIowa tocollectcosmic raymeasurements;here atechnicianworks on thespacecraft.

“

SPACEPORT NEWS January 16, 1998Page 2

HONORS – Paul Batastini (second from right) acceptsthe Key Control Custodian of the Year Award from KSCProtective Services Chief Cal Burch (right) and PatriciaTownsend ( far left), USA NSLD Security manager, andE. A. Wilson, director of Florida Security Operations forUSA. Batastini’s wife, Sandy (middle) won the award in1992.

USA worker earns keycustodian honors

United Space Alliance (USA) FloridaGround Operations employee PaulBatastini has received the sixth annualMorgan H. Carter Sr. KSC Key ControlCustodian of the Year Award.

Batastini, a member of USA’s NASAShuttle Logistics Depot (NSLD) securitystaff, is responsible for about 400different series of KSC controlled keys.His coordination efforts with the KSCLocksmith Office ensures that keys areissued to NSLD personnel in a timely,accurate and efficient manner.

During the transition from Rockwell toUSA, Batastini was responsible forensuring all key/core-related issues wereaddressed. This included ensuring allNSLD office and warehouse locks werecorrectly cored to allow proper access. Healso coordinated a large number ofemployee turn-ins and new key issues,both at the NSLD and on KSC. Heaccomplished all this work with no lostwork force time.

Kenneth Payne, a veteran leader inthe field of acquisition and logisticsmanagement, is being named director ofLogistics Operations at the KennedySpace Center, effective Feb. 1, 1998, byCenter Director Roy Bridges.

"I am very pleased that Ken Payne isjoining our KSC staff," said Bridges. "Heis a man with world-class credentials inleading change in large, high-technologyacquisition and logistics organizations."

Payne's responsibilities as LogisticsOperations director will includemanagement of the contract for SpaceShuttle orbiter flight hardware spares,repairs, and all the associated planningand management of the supply vendorinfrastructure. He also will overseetechnical management of logisticsfunctions of repair and spares for alllaunch processing ground systems andfacilities for both Shuttle and payloadsprocessing, as well as Center support.

Other responsibilities includemanagement of all Center logisticsfunctions such as supply, transportation,equipment management, propertydisposal, and associated technicaltraining.

Payne, a member of the SeniorExecutive Service, currently serves asdeputy director of Requirements,

Kenneth Payne named director of KSCLogistics Operations

Headquarters AirForce MaterielCommand, Wright-Patterson AirForce Base, Ohio.The directorate isthe command focalpoint for programand productmanagementpolicy, processesand resources.

Payne is a certified AcquisitionProgram Manager and Logistician whohas managed major programs throughtheir life cycle. He began his federalcivilian career in 1972 followinggraduation from Georgia StateUniversity, joining the Defense ContractAdministration Services District inAlabama as an analyst. After a period ofservice with the Defense LogisticsAgency, Payne moved to the Air Force in1987, where he took on assignments ofincreasing responsibility, includingdeputy director, Plans and Programs forthe Ogden Air Logistics Center; deputyand then acting F-16 system supportmanager; and deputy system programdirector for the F-16 and C-17 programs.He is a former Army infantry officer withcombat experience in Vietnam.

Joseph Rothenberg, director of NASA’sGoddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt,Md., has been named AssociateAdministrator for the Office of SpaceFlight. He succeeds Wil Trafton, whorecently joined Lockheed MartinInternational Launch Services asexecutive vice president.

Rothenberg also will lead the HumanExploration and Development of Spaceenterprise, an element of NASA’sStrategic Plan. Goddard Deputy DirectorAlphonso Diaz succeeds him as centerdirector at Goddard.

As associate administrator,Rothenberg will be responsible for allNASA human space flight programs, aswell as a variety of expendable launchvehicle operations and tracking andcommunications functions. One of hismost notable career achievements wasthe project leadership he provided whichresulted in the highly successful Hubbletelescope repair mission.

Rothenberg tapped fortop Space Flight post

Majestic sight

THIS Southern Bald Eagle was photographed as itsoared lazily overhead in the Schwartz/ContractorsRoads area of Launch Complex 39 one sunny afternoon.Scheduled to be completed this week was an annualaerial survey of the eagles’ nests on the space center.The birds typically arrive around September and stayuntil April or May. The survey, conducted by a MerrittIsland National Wildlife Refuge biologist, is conductedwhen the birds are well into their winter nesting and willhave given birth to eaglets, if any.

Health packet focuses ondisease-fighting foods

Information is available at all medicalfacilities about foods that fight disease:fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fishand other nutriments.

Information about how to cook food toensure maximum nutrition, natural andhome remedies that work, and whatfoods fight specific diseases, also isincluded.

Payne

SPACEPORT NEWSJanuary 16, 1998 Page 3

Ackerman, Dawn A., GG-C2

Alers, Nicholas V., FF-D3-A

Alloway, Edgar, EY-G

Bessinger, Donald J., EC-B

Blocker, Lonnie, LO-PMD-1

Blum, Joel S., DE

Branning, William W., BF

Brown, Christopher L., FF-S2

Brown, David, BF-B1

Carroll, Darren T., LO

Carter, Frances H., DE-TPO

Cartier, Kyle, FF-D2-C

Chandler, Daniel B., EY-N

Cottrell, James L., BR

Cristofano, Salvatore J., MS

Curington, Floyd A., BL

Davis, S. Barry, DL-ICD-A

Deshotel, James H., FF-S1B

Dutro, Ralph C., EY-N-A

Everette, Robert B., FF-Y

Flowers, A. David, GG

Garand, James M., HM

Goff, Joylyn Sue, OP-M

Goforth, Bobby W., BF-A3

Gregory, Sandra A., EI

Gruhler, Elizabeth S., LO-SOD-2A

Hall, Cindy J., BB-3

Hall, Richard L., EY-B5

Hall, Rodger, BC-A2

Halsema, Donald F., PZ-D

Harer, Kathleen F., DE-TPO

Harrington, James F., PH

Head, Freddie, BF-B

Hunt, Darleen A., AB

Hurst, Jack G., FF-SI-B

Jackson, Annita L., HM-A-3

Johnson, Ivory D., LO-ENG-1

Johnson, James F., PZ-B2

Kelley, James A., EI

Kennedy, Madeline Sue, BB-B

Kozmoski, Theresa A., AB-D

Lafferty, Gregory M., LO-MSD-2M

Lovall, Donald D., DL-DLD

Marin, Jose A., DE-CLC

McBrearty, John Carl, PH-B3

Merrilees, G. R., AB-F2

Mickler, John L., EY-E

Murray, Michael, LO-SOD-2

Owen, Lonnie E., EC-B

Parrish, Carrie Lee, DE-TPO

Plummer, Tanya E., EC-C-B

Rayburn, Larry M., PK-H6

Redding, Eric F., PZ-A

Sarver, Charlene A.. EI-F

Sestile, Eugene M., PH-B2

Sewell, Nancy E., BB-3

Squires, Marlene K., MK-SIO

Stefanovic, Terry A., DE-TPO

Stewart, Mark A., PK-G3

Towery, Delmar E., LO

Violette, Norbert G., FF-R-A

Wicker, Cynthia R., PH-E

Williamson, Homer C., Jr., FF-D4

63 NASA workers become first group to leave under63 NASA workers become first group to leave under63 NASA workers become first group to leave under63 NASA workers become first group to leave under63 NASA workers become first group to leave underlatest buyout offerlatest buyout offerlatest buyout offerlatest buyout offerlatest buyout offer

Editor’s Note: By Jan. 3, 63 NASA employees became the latest group to take advantage of thebuyout opportunity. More employees are expected to accept the offer by the end of this month, andNASA employees in two areas, Quality Assurance and Health and Safety, may sign up through Sept.30 of this year. Early-out personnel must depart by March 31. Individual writeups on four high-levelofficials are provided on the following pages. The space center extends its thanks and best wishes tothese employees for their years of service to the U.S. space program.

SPACEPORT NEWS January 16, 1998Page 4

Retiring NASA managers represent every facet of space programEditor’s Note: Jim Harrington comes

from the world of human spaceflight. SalCristofano culminated his career in thepayloads community. Dave Flowers helpedrun the business side of the house, whileFloyd Curington devoted his aerospacecareer to expendable launch vehicles.

A. David Flowersretired Jan. 3 from thepost of chief financialofficer at KennedySpace Center after 35years of governmentservice.

As chief financialofficer for the pastfour years, he wasresponsible for the

centralized planning and analysis of allspace center resources and financialmanagement activities.

Flowers began his career as anengineer and worked on all the mannedspace programs except Mercury. A nativeof North Carolina, he holds a bachelor’sdegree in mechanical engineering fromNorth Carolina State University.

He served in the Air Force from 1962to 1965, and worked on the Atlas-Agenaand Gemini programs. He joined KSC in1965 and worked in the Apollo ProjectOffice. He held positions of increasingresponsibility at the space center: testsupervisor in Launch Operations; orbitermanager in the Shuttle Project Office;chief of the Performance ManagementSystem Office in the Shuttle ProjectOffice; chief of the RequirementsAnalysis Office within the ComptrollerOffice; and chief of the Project ControlOffice for the Space Station ProjectOffice.

Flowers was named the associatedirector of Payload Management andOperations in 1989, and served in thatposition until his appointment as chieffinancial officer in October 1993. Amonghis numerous awards are two NASAExceptional Service Medals and the KSCEqual Opportunity Award.

The best part of working at KSC, hesaid, was “the many dedicated people outhere who are willing to work well beyondtheir assignments. I wish everybodygoodbye and good luck.”

Flowers listed two major activities onhis retirement agenda — playing golfand spending time with his fivegrandchildren. He and his wife, Ruth,who retired from NASA in 1994, live inTitusville. They have two grownchildren, Diane and David Flowers Jr. ,who works for NASA in the SpaceStation Hardware Integration Office atKSC.

Jim Harrington didn’t think it wouldbe too hard to make the transition fromShuttle launch director to world travelerand avid golfer.

“It’s a decision I thought about quite abit before I made it,” he said of hisintention to retire Jan. 3 after more than40 years in the space business. While heindicated his willingness and availabilityto support the Shuttle program in anyway he can after he leaves, his goalswere clear: spend time with his wife,Jean, travel and play golf.

Harrington’s entire professional careerwas dedicated to living, working andbreathing the space program. He neverworked anywhere else. As a newlyminted electrical engineer, degree fromthe University of Miami tucked under hisarm, the North Carolina native joinedGeneral Dynamics Astronautics on CapeCanaveral in 1957, the same year theSoviet Sputnik hurtled into orbit and theSpace Age began.

Harrington’s first job as the race intospace heated up: senior flight testengineer on the Mercury-Atlas launchteam. He also worked for Grumman as atest conductor for the Lunar Moduleprior to joining NASA in 1966 as seniortest supervisor for Apollo 6, 9, 12 and 15.

Harrington served as operations chieffor the Atlas Centaur expendable launchvehicle program from 1972-1976. He alsoheld a wide variety of positions in testingand preparing Space Shuttles for launch,including: senior test conductor for theOrbiter Processing Branch; vehiclemanager, STS-1; branch chief, Orbiter/ET Processing; and Ground Operationsmanager, STS-1 through 6.

He served as panel chairman foroperations on the Shuttle ProcessingContract Source Evaluation Board(SEB). Following the SEB assignment,Harrington served as flow director forSTS-9 (Columbia), STS-8 through 51L(Challenger), and STS-51C (Discovery).

Harrington was appointed deputydirector, Shuttle Operations, in 1986,and director in July 1988. He moved

Between the four of them, these spaceprogram veterans have nearly 150 years ofexperience in advancing the goals of theU.S. space program. While the centerextends its thanks for their long service tothe country, it also wishes them bestwishes as they find new paths to explore.

from the Shuttle Operations Directoratein February 1994, to serve as director,Safety and Reliability, and then returnedto Shuttle operations to assume the postof launch director effective Jan. 22, 1995.He joined the ranks of Senior ExecutiveService (SES) management in 1988.

The thrill of watching a Space Shuttlelift off and knowing he had a critical rolein making it happen isn’t whatHarrington considers to be the highlightof his tenure as launch director. It wasthe teamwork.

“Being able to work with the KSClaunch team and seeing them perform isthe best thing about this job,” heobserved.

Harrington received Certificates ofCommendation in 1970 as lead testsupervisor, Apollo, and again in 1982 onthe STS-3 White Sands, New Mexico,landing turnaround. He was therecipient of three Exceptional ServiceAwards: in 1971, for his notablecontributions to the success of the Apollo15 mission; in 1981, for STS-1; andagain, in 1989, for his contributions tothe successful return to flight with thelaunch of STS-26.

As director, Shuttle Operations, hewas awarded the OutstandingLeadership Medal in June 1990.Harrington received a Silver Snoopyaward in March 1994.

Harrington and his wife will continueto reside in Melbourne. They have twogrown children, Kristin and James.

James F. Harrington

HARRINGTON and wife Jean were on hand to greetthe crew of Mission STS-87 upon their return from orbitin December. Here, the Harringtons chat withCommander Kevin Kregel underneath the orbiterColumbia at KSC’s Shuttle Landing Facility.

A. David Flowers

Flowers

SPACEPORT NEWSJanuary 16, 1998 Page 5

Salvatore J.Cristofano

SalCristofanocompleted acareer Jan.3 thatspannedfourdecades andcarried himacross thecountryfrom

Washington state to Florida.Originally from Canton,

Ohio, Cristofano began hisaerospace career in April 1961as a test engineer at Boeing’sHazardous Test Site inMarysville, Wash. He workedon both the Saturn V launchvehicle and Apollo spacecraftduring the 1960s, and joinedNASA in 1966 at KSC.

After participating in boththe Skylab and Apollo-SoyuzTest Project programs,Cristofano began work on the

Shuttle program in the mid-’70s. He initially was involvedwith developing verticalpayload processing conceptsand facilities for the Shuttle.

Cristofano moved to NASAHeadquarters in 1983 tosupport the Shuttle Centaurprogram. After the Challengeraccident, he headed a team todevelop alternate methods forlaunching high-energymissions such as Galileo,Ulysses and Magellan. He wasappointed to the SeniorExecutive Service in 1986.

Cristofano returned to KSCin 1994, serving as thePayload Carriers Programmanager first in Washington,D.C., and continuing in thatcapacity when the programwas transferred to Florida.

For Cristofano, there was nodebating the highlights ofnearly 30 years in theaerospace business: the firstSaturn V launch and thelaunch of Apollo 11.

He was noncommital abouthis retirement plans, notingonly that relaxation andfishing were on the agenda.

Floyd A.Curington

FIRST NASA spacecraft with a lunar destination since the Apollo missions of the 1960sand early 1970s begins its four-day journey from Launch Complex 46 on Cape CanaveralAir Station. The Lunar Prospector spacecraft lifted off atop a Lockheed MartinAstronautics Athena II rocket at 9:28 p.m. EST, Jan. 6, and is now orbiting the moon.

Destination: The Moon

STS-89 liftoff set for Jan. 22David Wolf can start

packing his bags for the returntrip to Earth from the RussianSpace Station Mir. Hisreplacement, Andy Thomas,and six other crew membersare slated to lift off from KSCon Jan. 22 to bring him home.

STS-89, the first Shuttleflight of 1998, will be the 89thShuttle flight in programhistory. This eighth dockingbetween the U.S. SpaceShuttle and Russian SpaceStation Mir will be the firstconducted with an orbiterother than Atlantis. The SpaceShuttle Endeavour returns toflight after completing a yearand a half of modifications andupgrades.

The STS-89 crew, inaddition to Thomas, includesCommander Terrence Wilcutt;Pilot Joe Frank Edwards; andMission Specialists JamesReilly, Michael Anderson,Bonnie Dunbar and SalizhanSharipov (Russia).

The launch window opens atabout 9:43 p.m. EST, with thepreferred launch time 9:48p.m.. Liftoff will be from Pad39A. Landing would occur onJan. 31 at about 5:36 p.m. ESTat KSC’s Shuttle LandingFacility. Besides the crewexchange, some 7,000 poundsof experiments, supplies andhardware are scheduled fortransfer between the twospacecraft.

Curington

STS-89 CREW arrives at KSC Jan. 14 for Terminal Countdown Demonstration Testactivities. From left to right are Mission Specialists Salizhan Sharipov; Bonnie Dunbar;and James Reilly; Commander Terrence Wilcutt; Mission Specialist Andrew Thomas;Pilot Joe Edwards Jr.; and Mission Specialist Michael Anderson.

Cristofano

Floyd A.Curington,actingdirector ofExpendableVehicles,retired Jan.3 from 33years offederalservice.

During his tenure heparticipated in the Vikingmissions to Mars and Voyagerinterplanetary explorations.

Curington began his careerin 1964 supporting hydraulicoperations in the FacilitiesGroup at Saturn/ApolloLaunch Complexes 34 and 37on Cape Canaveral.

He also provided support atComplex 19 for the Geminiprogram. In 1966 hetransferred to the payloadoperations division of the

Unmanned Launch OperationsDirectorate.

Curington is proud to havethe distinction of havingsupported every planetarypayload having flown on anexpendable vehicle and he isproudest of his contributionsto the Pioneer, Viking andVoyager programs.

He also contributed to thesuccess of the Cassini missionto Saturn last year, working tointegrate the NASA/Air Force/contractor team on thiscomplex mission.

Said Curington, “Theplanetary missions of the1970s made for a lot of veryfun days to come to work.”

Curington became theacting director of ExpendableVehicles in 1994. In thisposition he had a significantrole in shaping NASA’s launchservices contracts with theprivate sector and theassociated governmentoversight responsibilities thatare the foundation for thedirectorate’s operations today.

John F. Kennedy Space Center

Managing editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce BuckinghamEditor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . Paula ShawaEditorial support provided by Sherikon Space Systems Inc. Writers Group.Photographic support primarily provided by The Bionetics Corp. and Public AffairsPhotographer George Shelton, also of Bionetics.

USGPO: 532-112/20063

Spaceport News

The Spaceport News is an official publication of the Kennedy Space Centerand is published on alternate Fridays by the Public Affairs Office in the interestof KSC civil service and contractor employees. Contributions are welcome and should be submitted two weeks beforepublication to the Media Services Branch, AB-A. E-mail submissions can besent to Paula.Shawa-1@ksc.nasa.gov

SPACEPORT NEWS January 16, 1998Page 6

Explorer I ...(Continued from Page 1)occurred. By this time, theentire team was on its feet.

“What do you want to do?”Test Coordinator Robert Moserasked Debus, then-director forthe ABMA Firing Laboratorythat included the 54 meninside the blockhouse just 100yards from the rocket.

Debus calmly lookedthrough the window at thevehicle on the pad.

“I had looked at the vane inquestion and did not see anymotion,” Debus later recalled

on the 25th anniversary of theevent. “This had to be,therefore, an indication only. Iwaved my hand to continue.”

Seconds later, at 10:48 p.m.,the vehicle roared to life. Lesssophisticated spacecrafthardware included a solid-fueled upper stage that had tobe fired manually through aradio relay by personnel threemiles from the launch site.

An agonizing 95-minutewait ensued before thespacecraft’s course was pickedup by a tracking station on theWest Coast to confirm its orbit.

While the size and scale of

bring up to three guests freeon the tour.

• Special tickets can bepicked up by employees, withtheir KSC badge, Tuesday,Jan. 13, through Friday, Jan.16, at the IMAX ticket counterin the Galaxy Center at theKSC Visitor Complex. Thecounter is open from 9 a.m. to6 p.m.

• Badged employees andtheir guests may use the ticketon a given day to travel by busto the different tour sites,beginning at the KSC VisitorComplex. The Apollo /Saturn VCenter and the LC 39Observation Gantry are on onebus route from the VisitorComplex, while theInternational Space StationCenter is reached by another.

• These two new tourdestinations will be open toKSC employees only by takingthe Visitor Complex bus tours.Employees may not visit thelocations on their own due tooperational constraints.

The new attractionsrepresent the second phase ofa comprehensive effort tomake the American spaceprogram as accessible aspossible to members of thegeneral public visiting KSC.

“These new attractions,along with the Apollo/Saturn VCenter, give the visitorunprecedented access to theU.S. space program andKennedy Space Center. Now,

Tour ...(Continued from Page 1)

the Jupiter-C and the ExplorerI mission appear small bothliterally and figurativelycompared to the latersuccesses of the Apollo lunarlanding, Skylab and SpaceShuttle efforts, its place inhistory remains large as aturning point in the thennascent space race betweenthe United States and SovietUnion.

“I knew you could do it,”wrote one well wisher to theExplorer I team. “Tell theworld that we have just begunto fight.”

After the launch, ABMA

Director Maj. Gen. J.B.Medaris commissioned abooklet reprinting just some ofthe thousands ofcongratulatory messages theteam received from around theworld, including those shownhere.

“I know that you will sharemy enjoyment of thesestatements,” he wrote in theintroduction, “and mygratitude that we restored insome measure, the confidenceof our people and our friendsin many lands in thecapabilities of the UnitedStates.”

instead of a tour largelylimited to driving around ourfacilities, visitors can spend asmuch of their day as they wishin the heart of our operationalsites, getting an up close andpersonal view of both historyand the future,” said JamesBall, chief of the NASA PublicServices Office at KSC.

The 60-foot-tall LC 39Observation Gantry features atop-level observation deck witha surrounding open-airwalkway. From here, visitorshave a 360-degree panoramicview of KSC’s Launch Complex39 area.

In addition to unparalleledviews, the LC 39 ObservationGantry offers several otherexperiences to pull the visitorinto the midst of the Shuttleprogram. Shuttle astronautMarsha Ivins appears in a filmpresentation to explain how aShuttle is prepared for launch.An exhibit gallery highlightscomponents of the Shuttle andthe launch facilities, includinga sample of the protective tile

that shields the orbiter fromthe extreme temperatures ofspace and re-entry, and anactual Shuttle main enginesuspended between two floors.Also located here is theShuttle Science ResearchStation which features twointeractive exhibits. Visitorscan use touch-screens togather information about theShuttle program, provided by

actual KSC personnel.The International Space

Station Center also is designedto make visitors feel likeparticipants rather thanremote observers in America’sspace program. The spacestation experience begins witha film hosted by RobertCabana, commander of thefirst U.S. assembly flight set tooccur in July 1998.

Cabana talks about thepurpose of the station and thechallenges of designing andconstructing such a mammothresearch laboratory. Full-scalemockups of station modules,through which visitors canwalk, are on display. Guestscan then take an elevatedwalkway to a galleryoverlooking the work areawhere actual InternationalSpace Station hardware isbeing prepared for flight intospace.

A VIEW TOFOREVER — Fromthe observationdeck six stories upon the new LC 39Observation Gantry,visitors haveunprecedentedviews of the launchpads and thesurrounding area.