Last Day in Florida

Yesterday was our final full day in Florida, and once again we packed it in.  We got up early again, and headed to Kennedy Space Center, where we were able to go into one of the old shuttles (it seems much smaller inside), see an incredible 3-D Imax film about the Hubble Space Telescope, and go into a Space Shuttle Simulator.  The astronauts had a hand in designing that ride, and it tops anything at Disney World!  While you are standing in line, they play videos of the astronauts talking about the take-off experience, and they're quite moving.  Then you are shuttled into a room, where one of the past shuttle commanders explains each stage of a launch.  That part alone was worth the trip to KSC, as it really helped us understand what we had been watching on Friday.  We had wondered why we had to sit so far away.  Now we know.  If you are within 400 feet of the shuttle, the heat will kill you.  If you are within 800 feet, the sound will kill you.  And, we were told, if you are within several thousand feet, the vibrations stir up so much unfriendly wildlife (all those alligators), it isn't safe to be around.  Now we get it!
The ride itself, while undoubtedly less intense than an actual launch, was still quite an experience.  Lots of shaking and a sense of the speed that the astronauts feel when they go from 0 to several thousand mph in a matter of minutes.  By 8.5 minutes, they are in orbit and going 17,500 miles per hour, 220 miles above the earth.
In addition to understanding the launch better, we learned quite a bit about how the research done on the shuttles has benefited society, generating knowledge that has led to the development of things like cochlear ear implants, biogenerators and micro heart implants.  Even the infrared ear thermometer came from shuttle research.  Personally, I felt pretty sad knowing that for now, our own space program is more or less on hold.  We saw a mock-up of the Orion, which was to be the next spacecraft, combining the reentry benefits of the shuttle with the ability to leave Earth's orbit that the capsule rockets had.  Unfortunately, the funding for that has been scrapped.
Another amazing thing at Kennedy was that Imax film.  We saw images of stars being "born" in a distant nebula near Orion's belt, TRILLIONS of miles away.  That makes me feel pretty darn small.
Until this weekend, I don't think I fully appreciated what these astronauts go through.  The men and women who dedicate themselves to these missions are truly heroes.

After KSC, we headed to Cocoa Beach, where the kids all put their hot selves into the Atlantic Ocean for the first time.  As you can see from the pictures, it was another great day.