Some places are so strongly linked with the reasons for which they are known that they share synonymy and metonymy.  When we think of Lourdes, we think of miracles.  When we think of Pompeii, we think of volcanic disaster.  When we think of Oxford, we think of the university.  Indeed, so inextricable are Oxford and the university that the phrase 'Oxford University' is actually tautological.  So it follows, that when we think of Cape Canaveral, we think of spaceflight.

The area around Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Centre is actually known as the Space Coast, and with good reason.  For while there are other places in the world that are used for staging the exploration of space, none are as well known, as culturally engrained, as those on the Space Coast.  Travelling east along the Beeline Expressway towards Brevard County, cruising beneath the perfect copper sulphate sky, reflected in the mirages on the dry, hot asphalt, looking for alligators and toll plazas, one approaches the Kennedy Space Centre with a sense of wonder, anticipation, and awe.

Space travel is neither new nor uncommon, but for most of us, the only experience of it we have ever had or will ever have is what we have seen on the TV, so just the thought visiting Kennedy, of touching the hem of NASA's cloak makes one feel special, connected to that most recent and extraordinary history.  Travelling into space may well be man's greatest achievement, but visiting the place where it all happened, where it still happens, is one of life's greatest joys.

The area is a massive nature reserve, so there is much to see aside from historical and technological displays.  Alligators are so common as to be unnerving for those of us unused to such things.  Eagles, vultures, manatee, rattlesnakes, and more, add to the biodiversity of a nature reserve reserved for the wholly unnatural, and you can see all of these things when you tour the Kennedy Space Centre.  However, before reaching the main visitor complex at Kennedy, one passes the Astronaut Hall of Fame.

The Astronaut Training Experience is held at the Astronaut Hall of Fame.  This is a half day of activities and simulations for which one must pre-book, aimed at giving visitors a taste of the kind of things astronauts do.  After arrival and registration, the groups are led into a very large room (large rooms and buildings being a staple of design at Kennedy) to see a full size replica of the front end of the orbiter (what you might call the space shuttle).

The Astronaut Training Experience begins with the use of simulators in a classroom environment.  These simulators are essentially the same as those used by real astronauts to train in various aspects of shuttle missions, including flying, docking and landing the orbiter, and payload operations.  You won't be surprised to learn that the orbiter does not have a standard qwerty keyboard, and neither do the simulators.  They use a joystick, and a replica orbiter keypad.  The most irritating thing about the orbiter keypad is that the numerals are not arranged in the same way as they are on the numeric keypad of a standard keyboard, which means that one often presses the wrong number.  With a standard keyboard keypad, the 1, 2, and 3 numeric keys are at the bottom, but with the orbiter, they are at the top.  This might not sound like a big deal, but when one has spent decades using a standard keyboard and is trying to deploy the landing gear at the appropriate time, it's easy to make mistakes.

The order of activities is arranged to enable two different teams to go through the experience at the same time, without getting in each other's way, so it is not set in stone, but you have to use the classroom simulators before doing a simulated mission.  The simulated mission is scripted, with people taking on various roles from Flight Director to Commander.  Those who are selected (randomly) for ground-based roles enjoy their simulated mission from a mock mission control room.  Those with roles in the orbiter itself (payload specialists, pilot and commander) enter the replica orbiter and perform the mission from there.

Inside the orbiter, there is a mid deck and a flight deck, the latter being where the simulated mission takes place.  The orbiter is a faithfully reproduced replica with exactly the same hardware and software as one would see on the real space shuttle.  All of the windows have flat screens behind them to simulate what you will see during the mission.  There are various control panels around the flight deck and pilot with hundreds of switches and controls, but some of these have been omitted and are represented by images, so as not to be too confusing during the mission.  There are many switches and controls that are still included, but when you have to find switch O37 while being traumatised by a simulated alarm, I promise you, it's still not easy.  Worse still is that everyone in mission control can see as well as hear everything that is going on in the orbiter, so when you're incompetently searching for a switch, they all see it.

Following launch, the payload specialists move from the mid deck to the flight deck and perform some tasks to open the payload doors and use the robotic arm to extract whatever was held therein.  Eventually, the tasks are complete and we return to earth, which meant that, as commander, I had to land the orbiter.  The pilot has responsibility for various preparatory operations and both the pilot and commander must input seemingly endless codes into the upside down keypads and flick switches on the panels that surround us.  Again, the software in the replica orbiter is exactly the same as that used on the real orbiter (something I was later able to verify looking at footage from within the real orbiter), and to land, one has to keep on track by following a guide on screen denoting the position and path to take.

Below are some pictures taken from the flight deck of the orbiter taken during the simulated mission:

Having completed the mission, we moved on to the other training activities.  First up, we were told was the Motorised Multi Axis Trainer.  Imagine being in a washing machine as it is rolled down a steep hill, and you'll get an idea of what this is like.  The MAT is a truly horrendous experience, but one I'm pleased I did.  Real astronauts have to endure these things, and I wanted to experience what they did, but I promise you, it was extremely unpleasant.

Following the MAT, we tried the micro-gravity simulator.  This is a wall with a counterbalanced harness which simulates micro-gravity.  Once strapped in, you climb up and down a scaffold, which might not sound exciting, but the ability to float gracefully up and down the scaffold using the slightest touches with your fingertips is an enjoyable experience.  The nipping, squeezing and chafing of the harness however, is not.

Next was the moon gravity simulator, which is another harness, but quite bouncy and is much like the bouncy harnesses used to hang children in doorways, with the exception that this one enables the wearer to move back and forth.  It was tricky to say the least, but again, was good fun.

There are various opportunities to meet astronauts at Kennedy, between the Astronaut Training Experience, the Astronaut Encounter, and the Lunch with an Astronaut, erm, lunch, you shouldn't leave there without capitalising on the opportunity to feel inadequate in the presence of someone who has excelled sufficiently at what they do, and has the courage to risk their life, to break free of our gravitational shackles and blast into space.

There are various interesting exhibits and activities at the Astronaut Hall of Fame, and I urge you to go there to try them, but no trip there would be complete without using the centrifuge.  Unlike the centrifuges you may have seen on TV, this one is quite small, you face the centre rather than the direction of travel, and it has two cockpits so that two people can try it at once.  It will take you up to 4Gs while watching a flight simulation.  Towards the end when the G Force is strongest, the cockpits swing outwards, leaning you forward, but due to the centrifugal force, you are still pinned back and you begin to feel your face stretch backwards as your cheeks become four times heavier than they were when you started.

Below is a video of the centrifuge, which unfortunately does not do justice to the actual speed it rotates, but will give you some idea of what to expect.

Before I move on to the Kennedy Space Centre, here are some random pictures of some of the other things you can see at the Astronaut Hall of Fame.

Exit the Astronaut Hall of Fame and turn right.  A few miles down the road, you will reach the Kennedy Space Centre.  KSC is huge, and has its own fleet of coaches to take visitors around the various sites therein.  With your admission, you get a bus tour to the main attractions, but there are two optional bus tours for which you must pay extra, but are well worth the money.  You can return to KSC for free within a week of purchasing a ticket, and whilst this might be desirable, I assure you it is essential.  What I have already described in the Astronaut Hall of Fame will consume an entire day.  Each of the bus tours at KSC will take about half a day so if you intend to see everything, between the Astronaut Hall of Fame, KSC and three bus tours, you will want at least three days to experience it all.  I could spend half a day in the main gift shop alone.

At the main visitor complex, there are various exhibits on past and future spaceflight, together with an IMAX cinema showing 3D films of footage shot by astronauts while in space.

Here are some of the attractions at the main visitors centre.

Below are pictures of the Rocket Garden and the orbiter at Space Shuttle Plaza

The Shuttle Launch Experience provides various warnings so that the faint of heart do not partake if they don't think they can take it.  With the exception of those with specific health reasons not to partake (pregnant women, those with severe back problems, etc) I strongly urge you to ignore the warnings.  It is an excellent experience, and actually quite relaxing rather than frightening, but if you really must bottle it, you can still watch the experience from an observation room, so at least you have not completely missed out.

Before the 'launch' you will see various astronauts on monitors telling you what it is like to fly on the shuttle, and how realistic the simulator is.  Passengers are loaded into a seated cargo bay.  Once strapped into your seat, and having ensured that nothing is going to fall from your pockets onto the passengers behind you, the whole thing swings back until it is just shy of vertical.  There is a countdown, the engines start, the room and seats rumble and vibrate, you feel the same 'twang' that you will hear astronauts speak of when the main engines adjust to maintain position.  As the simulation continues and the shuttle launches, you will feel your seat-backs collapse as you sink into them, to simulate the G force of a launch.  I won't describe the rest of the simulation, because some things are best experienced rather than described, but please don't be afraid to try it.  It's not scary, but it is fun.

So to the bus tours.  The tour included with the price of admission takes you from the main visitors complex to:

Below are some photos from the Saturn V Centre

The next bus tour we took was the Up Close tour, though I think this has now been renamed as the Today and Tomorrow tour.  On this tour, there is nothing indoors, as it is about seeing and photographing some of the landmarks at Kennedy from better vantage points.  It takes you closer to Launch Complex 39 and the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) than you would get on a standard visit.  It was nice to see these things that you will also see on TV and in films, and while we were there, the Space Shuttle Discovery was on the launchpad.  Unfortunately, Discovery was not scheduled to launch while we were there, and it is best not to arrange a holiday around launch dates, because they can be delayed and cancelled.  As it happens though, a few weeks after returning to England, we did see Discovery pass by along with the International Space Station one night at a Nastro meeting at Hauxley.

At some points, the tour guides have to keep an eye out for alligators, and if one appears, you may need to hurry back onto the coach.  The Vehicle Assembly Building was at one time the largest building by volume in the world.  Whilst not the tallest of buildings, it is so voluminous that the Empire State Building could fit inside it three and three quarter times.  It also has the largest painted flag in the world on one side.  To give you some idea of scale, the blue section of the American flag is the size of a basketball court, and each of the stars are the size of an adult.

The final bus tour we took was Cape Canaveral Then and Now.  This is a fascinating tour around the older areas of Cape Canaveral, visiting old disused launchpads and control buildings.  It is a little sad in a way, because these smaller attractions have smaller gift shops and are quite isolated as well as obviously being a little run down due to their age, but their place in history is unquestionable.  Visiting the buildings in which Werner Von Braun led the development, testing and success of American rocketry is a privilege.  

Whilst on the coaches, they show documentaries about some of the less celebrated operations at NASA, such as the ship that retrieves the Solid Rocket Booters (SRBs) from the sea following a launch.  What is notable with all these documentaries is that every employee filmed makes the same claim... that other than the astronauts, they have the coolest job there.

This tour also took us to Launch Complex 34, where the Apollo 1 disaster killed Grisson, White and Chaffee.  On arrival at this launchpad, we were told not to go too close to the bushes at the left side of the pad, because there are a lot of rattlesnakes over there, and not to go too far to the right, because a few weeks earlier, they had found a thirteen foot alligator, and although they moved him on, there was nothing to stop him returning.  You can be sure that they were not lying about this because that was the area with the picnic tables, which we were not allowed to use.  When filming for Armageddon, Bruce Willis placed small plaque on the side of the stanchion on the launchpad in memory of the astronauts who died there.  The inscription AD ASTRA PER ASPERA (A rough road leads to the stars) is particularly apt for Nastro, as the road to Hauxley Nature Reserve is certainly not the smoothest of surfaces.  I actually picked up a few pieces of this launchpad to bring back with me as souvenirs and they sit in the case with one of the meteorites I bought from KSC.

Back at the main visitors centre, we also saw Richard Hammond who was there filming for an episode of Engineering Connections, though of course, I am not suggesting this is an attraction you are likely to see when you are there, but because she insisted, here is the photo of Sharna with Richard.  If you're wondering what he's like in person, he's very suave.

In the gift shop, there are many interesting models, toys, games, clothes, books and memorabilia you can buy, from NASA guitar plectra (just like the ones astronauts don't use in space), to flight suits, mission patches and meteorites.  The prices of meteorites start at about $30, but in the display case in the first photograph, there is a larger meteorite for $3500, and in the second photograph, there is a very large, and extremely heavy meteorite that can be yours for the bargain price of $12000.

Although we did not get to see a launch of the space shuttle, we did get to see the launch of a GOES-P satellite, on a Delta IV rocket.  This took off from Launch Complex 37 at Canaveral Air Force Base.  We viewed this from the roadside at Port Canaveral.  We arrived very early to make sure we had time to find the place and get a good spot.  We were the first people there, and as others started to arrive, it was obvious that there was some confusion about which part of the skyline to watch.  There are several launchpads in view and nobody seemed to know which one was LC37.  Luckily, a person who parked beside me and who views many launches conferred with a friend of his who was using a high-power camera lens, and confirmed which pad was the one to watch.  For the record, it was the one I told everyone it was.

The same person parked beside me was also a member of a ham radio club, and after speaking to a friend of his in Yorkshire, we were able to listen in to mission control.  This was especially helpful, because the launch had a window of about an hour, and without listening to mission control, we would not have known about the delays, and the expected revised launch time.  So while everyone else had to watch the same area of skyline for an hour not knowing exactly when liftoff would be, we got to listen to the various delays, an alarm, and the countdown, so we knew exactly when it was all going to happen.  Due to an alarm, the launch was delayed by about fifty minutes by which time, what was planned as a daylight launch, turned into a night time launch.  This was especially impressive, because once the engines ignite, there follows what looks like a very rapid sunrise, before the inverted candle in the distance climbs upon a pillar of smoke toward heaven.  Seconds later, this sight is joined by the roar as the sound catches up with you.

Below are some photos of the launch, starting with a view of the launch complex in daylight.

Finally, you should spend an evening at the Brevard Community College Planetarium and Observatory.  Open every weekend for free, the observatory houses the largest public telescope in Florida, a 24 inch Ritchey–Chrétien with an 18 foot focal length.  Florida is extremely popular with golfers due to the almost permanently conducive weather, and it is therefore equally beneficial for astronomy.  While in the UK we may be lucky to have a clear night falling on a weekend, in Florida, you would have to be extremely unlucky for there to be any cloud at all on any night.  The skies are very clear, and with such good skies and such an excellent telescope, anyone interested in astronomy should be sure to go to this observatory.  Whilst at the observatory, we saw (among other things) Saturn and the Orion Nebula through this scope, and they were indeed sights to behold.

As the name would suggest, the site also houses a planetarium with various shows to see, and although the planetarium is not free, it's certainly not expensive, so make sure you go if you are there.

http://www.brevard.cc.fl.us/planet/index.html

When your holiday in Florida disappointingly comes to an end, go to the KSC shop in the airport.  Apart from being able to spend the last of your money on more NASA souvenirs there, you can also touch a piece of Mars.