The "Missile Launch Complex 39A Site" was originally listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on May 24, 1973, for its association with the Man in Space Program. It was reevaluated in 1996 in the context of the Apollo Program, ca. 1961 through 1975, and on January 21, 2000, the newly defined Launch Complex 39: Pad A Historic District was listed in the NRHP. The Launch Complex 39: Pad A Historic District has since gained importance in the context of the Space Shuttle Program, ca. 1969 to 2010. As currently defined, the historic district contains twenty-one contributing resources and twenty-three noncontributing resources within its boundary. It is considered eligible for listing in the NRHP under Criteria A and C in the areas of Space Exploration and Engineering, respectively. Because it has achieved significance within the past 50 years, Criteria Consideration G applies. The period of significance for the Launch Complex 39: Pad A Historic District, with regards to the Space Shuttle Program, is from 1980, when the first Space Shuttle vehicle arrived at the launch pad, through 2010, the designated end of the Space Shuttle Program. The Space Shuttle Program is the longest running American space program to date. Unlike the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs, the emphasis was on cost effectiveness and reusability, as well as the construction of a space station. The district is one of two sites at the Kennedy Space Center specially designed and constructed to launch the Space Shuttle vehicle; the other site is the Launch Complex 39: Pad B Historic District, also listed in the NRHP on January 21, 2000. It has facilitated nationally significant events associated with space travel, and has been integral to the launching of the Space Shuttle. As such, the Launch Complex 39: Pad A Historic District is of exceptional importance to the Space Shuttle Program.Please note that photographs referenced in this report were not available for this reproduction. As a bonus, this compilation also includes the 11-part Aeronautics and Space Report of the President Fiscal Year 2016 Activities.

This first comprehensive history of the Kennedy Space Center, NASA's famous launch facility located at Cape Canaveral, Florida, reveals the vital but largely unknown work that takes place before the rocket is lit. Though the famous Vehicle Assembly Building and launch pads dominate the flat Florida landscape at Cape Canaveral and attract 1.5 million people each year to its visitor complex, few members of the public are privy to what goes on there beyond the final outcome of the flaring rocket as it lifts into space. With unprecedented access to a wide variety of sources, including the KSC archives, other NASA centers, the National Archives, and individual and group interviews and collections, Lipartito and Butler explore how the methods and technology for preparing, testing, and launching spacecraft have evolved over the last 45 years. Their story includes the Mercury and Gemini missions, the Apollo lunar program, the Space Shuttle, scientific missions and robotic spacecraft, and the International Space Station, as well as the tragic accidents of Challenger and Columbia. Throughout, the authors reveal the unique culture of the people who work at KSC and make Kennedy distinct from other parts of NASA. As Lipartito and Butler show, big NASA projects, notably the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station, had much to learn on the ground before they made it to space. Long before a spacecraft started its ascent, crucial work had been done, work that combined the muscular and mundane with the high tech and applied the vital skills and knowledge of the men and women of KSC to the design of vehicles and missions. The authors challenge notions that successful innovation was simply the result of good design alone and argue that, with large technical systems, real world experience actually made the difference between bold projects that failed and innovations that stayed within budget and produced consistent results. The authors pay particular attention to "operational knowledge" developed by KSC--the insights that came from using and operating complex technology. This work makes it abundantly clear that the processes performed by ground operations are absolutely vital to success.

Available as an epub for the first time Gateway to the Moon presents the definitive history of the origins, design, and construction of the lunar launch facilities at Kennedy Space Center, the terrestrial site of one of the greatest achievements of humankind: the first trip to the moon. It includes archival illustrations and diagrams of locations, personnel, and equipment, from aerial views of sandy, undeveloped Cape Canaveral to some of the first photos of the mobile launchers and crawler-transporters. Filled with the sense of wonder and pride that the earliest U.S. space achievements inspired, the book focuses on some of the most impressive buildings ever constructed, including launch complexes 39A and 39B, the gigantic assemblies from which the Apollo-Saturn vehicles departed for trips into space; the massive eight-acre Vertical Assembly Building (renamed the Vehicle Assembly Building); and the attached Launch Control Center. It also analyzes the technological and governmental interactions necessary to ensure success of the launches. Originally part of Moonport, one of the volumes of the NASA History Series, this volume is based on extensive interviews with participants in the space program and wide access to official documents, letters, and memoranda. The authors air criticisms directed at the Kennedy Space Center team and address mistakes in launch operations and conflicts within the program. Gateway to the Moon offers a faithful account of technology in service to humanity.

From Bumper V-2 rocket launches in 1950 to the launch of the Orion spacecraft atop a Delta IV rocket in 2014, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center has served as the nation’s portal to outer space for over 60 years. Images of Modern America: NASA Kennedy Space Center provides a fascinating look at the evolution of spacecraft technology and vintage images of Florida’s scenic Merritt Island, known as the “Space Coast.” This photographic history of the nation’s premier spaceport looks back at the United States’ glorious past in space exploration and ahead to its future.

Jonathan Ward takes the reader deep into the facilities at Kennedy Space Center to describe NASA’s first computer systems used for spacecraft and rocket checkout and explain how tests and launches proceeded. Descriptions of early operations include a harrowing account of the heroic efforts of pad workers during the Apollo 1 fire. A companion to the author’s book Countdown to a Moon Launch: Preparing Apollo for Its Historic Journey, this explores every facet of the facilities that served as the base for the Apollo/Saturn missions. Hundreds of illustrations complement the firsthand accounts of more than 70 Apollo program managers and engineers. The era of the Apollo/Saturn missions was perhaps the most exciting period in American space exploration history. Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center were buzzing with activity. Thousands of workers came to town to build the facilities and launch the missions needed to put an American on the Moon before the end of the decade. Work at KSC involved much more than just launching rockets. It was a place like none other on Earth. Technicians performed intricate operations, and hazards abounded everywhere, including lightning, fire, highly-toxic fuels, snakes, heat, explosives, LOX spills, and even plutonium. The reward for months of 7-day workweeks under intense pressure was witnessing a Saturn V at liftoff. For anyone who ever wished they had worked at Kennedy Space Center during the Apollo era, this book is the next best thing. The only thing missing is the smell of rocket fuel in the morning.