On Aug. 26, 1967, 50 years ago, the first operational Saturn V rolled out of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, seen in the photograph on the left. After several months of checkouts, the massive launch vehicle lifted off on Nov. 9, 1967, for the uncrewed Apollo 4 mission. The flight helped pave the way for the first landing on the moon less than two years later.
NASA now is preparing for the next large rocket — the Space Launch System, or SLS. Inside the Vehicle Assembly Building, installation of 10 levels of work platforms has been completed to support the SLS and the Orion crew spacecraft. The platforms will surround the launch vehicle, allowing access during processing. In the illustration on the right, the new rocket rolls out of the VAB for Launch Complex 39B atop the mobile launcher.
The SLS launch vehicle is a new heavy-lift rocket, more powerful than any previously built. It is designed to send astronauts aboard Orion beyond low-Earth orbit to destinations such as Mars. The first integrated mission for SLS and Orion is scheduled for 2019. During the Exploration Mission-1, Orion will travel tens of thousands of miles beyond the moon and splash down in the Pacific Ocean.
Photo credits: NASA