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Visiting the Houston Space Center

The Houston Space Center is the best place for space exploration, especially if you have kids who are budding astronauts or just interested in space, science, or American History. A visit to this legendary landmark is an absolute must if you happen to be there on holiday. You can be sure of a great experience for learning, excitement, and fun!

The Houston Space Center offers a learning experience for both kids and adults alike. Children of all ages will find something to learn and explore space in Kids Space Place made for the budding astronauts. They will enjoy tons of hands-on activities just for kids, while they learn about space, science, and the importance of space exploration.

Moreover, you will get an exclusive behind-the-scenes peek on the NASA tram tour at the space center. You can see the historic mission control that guided the early space exploration programs of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions at the Johnson Space Center. Also, you will get a peek at Hanger X and astronaut training facilities. If you are lucky, you may even get a glimpse of actual astronauts training for their missions!

The Astronaut Gallery at the Space Center gives loads of information on the men and women astronauts who have donned the space suits. Here you would find portraits of astronauts, space suits and a variety of memorabilia. Memorial of astronauts killed in training and actual missions like Apollo One, Challenger, and Columbia is not to be missed.

If you want to get a feel of what actual space looks like, Feel of Space Exhibit is ideal for you. This is an interactive presentation showcasing the actual living of astronauts in outer space. The Mission Briefing Officer answers your queries and makes your trip so full of knowledge. The simulated environment at the center gives you all the experience like landing an orbiter, or doing search and rescue operations in space.

A visit to the Space Center theatre would show you many life size pictures related to space exploration. You can see President Kennedy's resolve to put a man on the moon to Neil Armstrong's first walk on the moon. The screen is five-storey large, and you can see the history of space exploration and its future at one go.

Tailor-made movies showcasing different events and experiences cater to kids and adults alike. The Blast Off Theater shows the meticulous procedure put into place when a space shuttle leaves for the International Space Station. It has many actual behind the scenes activities, and amply shows the activities and emotions in mission control and mission status center.

The Houston Space Center is not to be missed if you are in its neighborhood. Shop at the Space Trader and purchase some mementoes of your trip for fond memories for you and your family. You would be amazed at what you can buy at the Space Trader-astronaut ice-cream, reproductions of newspapers commemorating important events in space explorations like landing on the moon-just to name a few! School groups and family all would find the visit a great fun-filled learning experience. Just 25 miles south of Houston, the Houston Space Center is waiting to be explored by you and your family.

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