"Dedicated by the citizens of Alabama to those Americans who have made it possible for man to walk on the moon and to explore the universe, and to the youth of America who will use the technology of space for the benefit of mankind."

-- Space & Rocket Center dedication plaque.

In 1950 Dr. Wernher von Braun arrived in the tiny Alabama town called Huntsville (pop. 15,000), the "Watercress Capital of the World," to head America's space program. Since then, Huntsville has been forged forever in history books as the birthplace of America's space program; where the rockets were developed that put the first U.S. satellite in orbit, sent men to the Moon and power today's Space Shuttle, and where the living modules were built for the International Space Station. Appropriately, today Huntsville is the home of the Earth's largest space attraction: The U.S. Space & Rocket Center.

During the final months that von Braun and his team of scientists were refining the giant rocket that sent Apollo astronauts to the moon, he began launching a permanent exhibit to showcase the hardware of the space program. His dream has been realized in the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, which houses hundreds of artifacts, including the charred Apollo 16 command module, a rock brought back from the moon, and one of the shuttle's main engines that flew on Columbia's maiden voyage in 1981. It is also home for U.S. SPACE CAMP®, the world's pre-eminent youth science activities program. SPACE CAMP is designed to encourage young people to pursue careers in science, technology and aerospace industries by giving them a first-hand introduction to the exciting work being done in the space program.

Established in 1965 by the State of Alabama, empowered by the U.S. Congress and supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center is the nation's leading hands-on space science museum. Since 1982, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center has fostered national and international outreach programs through the U.S. SPACE CAMP, U.S. SPACE ACADEMY (1984), ADVANCED SPACE ACADEMY™ (1997), and AVIATION CHALLENGE® (1990) programs, and through the creation of the U.S. Space Camp Foundation (1987), a non-profit, educational organization.

A narrated bus tour through the Marshall Space Flight Center compound and a Rocket and Shuttle Park, complete with space-inspired rides and simulators, are among the activities offered daily for visitors to the Space and Rocket Center. The Spacedome IMAX Theater, with a 67-foot domed screen, provides a "you-are-there" movie experience, and shows both space and non-space related movies at regular intervals throughout the day.