The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex has expanded its popular bus tour to include The Gantry at Launch Complex 39—a multi-level attraction nestled inside KSC that was updated and upgraded over the past several months.

Perched just 1.5 miles from LC-39A and 2.25 miles from LC-39B—the primary pads for NASA’s Artemis lunar missions—The Gantry offers a front-row seat to the agency’s current and future launch operations. Guests will find four stories of interactive exhibits, an Earth Information Center that explores how space science benefits life on our planet, and carefully preserved artifacts from NASA’s storied past.

No word has been given about launch viewing at the site. LC-39A and LC-39B are too close, of course, as there is at least a 3.5 mile exclusion area surrounding each pad and The Gantry will be too close for viewers. In the past, The Gantry has hosted spectators for launches from ULA’s pad at LC-41 and SpaceX’s pad at SLC-40 on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and given them a point blank (relatively speaking) view of the launch equal to what the working press sees.

Static Fire Simulator

For years, The Gantry had a real flight-worthy Aerojet-Rocketdyne RS-25 engine on display — one where users could get a close view of the engines that powered the launches of space shuttle orbiters and SLS rockets. When the Artemis program got started in earnest, that display was removed, leaving a huge hole in each level of The Gantry. That has been replaced by a new Static Fire simulator.

The new simulator, unique to The Gantry, recreates the moment a rocket engine fires for a ground test. Under the guidance of a NASA engineer and an on-site AI assistant named Sōl, visitors will witness an amplified demonstration: a 30-minute countdown culminates in a dramatic eruption of noise, light and cooling fog.

Education Is A Prominent Display At The Gantry

The Gantry’s designers also emphasize education. From its vantage point, guests can gaze across the wildlife refuge’s swamps and scrublands to active launch pads at both Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Interactive displays illustrate how each mission contributes to our understanding of Earth’s climate, ecosystems and natural resources.

For more information, contact the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Center.