The V.A.B. is short for vehicle assembly building. Short of actually standing in it, or looking up it, there is no way to convey the enormity of it’s size. This is where the shuttles and boosters are mated (put together), and where the crawler start the journey to the launchpad. At this point in time, it was also where the ARES was being assembled. The building can be seen from several causeways, including 520 in Merritt Island.
In it, There is a glass elevator which was built specifically for John F. Kennedy. I rode in it. It goes fast, and it’s an odd feeling to see everything over 30 stories up! The building is said to have it’s own atmosphere that builds clouds, and occasionally it rains. There are lots of interesting things I could go on about this building, including it’s graffiti history, the animals that live in it, and the offices, but if you’re really interested I’ll let you find out!
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Thank you for taking me back. Way back…when I was 16 and 17…I was the one appointed by the family to take out of town visitors to the Cape. I did not mind…the enormity of the VAB and the crawlers are engraved on my mind. This is a great series.
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