Yesterday at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex a really special exhibition was inaugurated as it’s about the Space Shuttle Orbiter Atlantis, which has thus become a tourist attraction. Astronauts who have been part of the 33 Atlantis missions attended the ceremony that opened an exhibition of over 8,000 square meters (about 90,000 square feet) dedicated to one of the spaceships that have made the history of space missions.
The Orbiter Atlantis had already arrived at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in November 2012, but it took some time to build a dedicated facility to house it. Now you can admire it on a platform 9 meters (30 feet) above the ground and an inclination of 43.21 degrees to one side. The Space Shuttle payload bay was opened and a replica of the robotic arm used in its missions has been installed. It extends outside the Atlantis to give an idea of how it worked.
The huge facility also includes the sale of various souvenirs related to the Space Shuttle Atlantis. It has cost about $100 million but financing hasn’t occurred through public funds, instead, the revenue the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex gets as a tourist attraction has been used. It’s therefore inevitable that the Atlantis has become a means of generating revenue as well.
Outside the facility that houses the Space Shuttle Atlantis there’s also a replica of the huge fuel tank and the booster that together with the Orbiter constituted the complete system to the Space Shuttle. Once inside, you can watch clips that tell the story of the Space Shuttle program and also use simulators to experience what it’s like to drive one of these Orbiters or use its robotic arm.
In short, the Space Shuttle Atlantis has become a tourist attraction but it’s not simply a museum piece. The sophisticated exhibition created to show it has in fact the goal to keep on using it as a source of inspiration, especially for the younger generations.
After the Space Shuttles were retired, there’s no spaceship of that kind among the ones currently in use and anyone who’s going to admire the Atlantis should know that for about 30 years they have flown almost regularly.
