HANCOCK COUNTY, Miss. – The Launch Pad, the point of origin for all tours of
Stennis Space Center and StenniSphere, celebrated its first anniversary this
month. Located at the Hancock County Welcome Center on Interstate 10, the
Launch
Pad is where fascinating day trips begin.
Tours start in the lobby of the Launch Pad with a sneak preview of
StenniSphere’s more than 50 exhibits and attractions. The day’s adventure
includes a 25-minute narrated bus tour of Stennis Space Center – America’s
largest rocket test complex – and it’s unique 125,000-acre buffer zone.
Designed to entertain while educating, StenniSphere includes informative
displays and exhibits from NASA, the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography
Command
and other agencies located at NASA’s lead center for rocket propulsion and
Earth
science applications.
See how this hotbed for technology grew from the swamps of southwest
Mississippi
in the Swamp to Space exhibit. Swell with pride at the accomplishments of
Mississippi and Louisiana astronauts, and see artifacts of their lives and
careers. From the Age of Apollo to Millennium Hall where today’s Space
Shuttle
Main Engines are explained and simulations can be tested, find out how
NASA technology has made and is making our lives better today.
Admission to StenniSphere is free. The visitor center is open daily from 9
a.m.
to 5 p.m. except New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and
Christmas Day. Tours depart on a regular schedule each day from the Launch
Pad
tour stop at the Hancock County Welcome Center on I-10 at Exit 2.
For more information or to make reservations for groups, call StenniSphere
at
(228) 688-2370 or 1-800-237-1821 (Option 1) in Mississippi and Louisiana, or
access the StenniSphere home page on the World Wide Web at
www.ssc.nasa.gov/public/visitors.
