A random stop at a rest area featuring a Saturn 1B rocket inspired us to take a detour to visit the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Although the facility was closed, we were able to appreciate the sheer scale of the spacecrafts.
The Saturn V rocket was 111 meters (363 feet) tall, about the height of a 36-story-tall building, and 18 meters (60 feet) taller than the Statue of Liberty. Fully fueled for liftoff, the Saturn V weighed 2.8 million kilograms (6.2 million pounds), the weight of about 400 elephants.
(source, NASA)
[Translated into football terms, the Saturn V was as tall as a football filed including the end zones.]
This was an unexpected, but cool item. Apparently, Miss Baker was quite a monkey -- the first animal to travel in space and return alive -- and she had a much younger husband to boot.
As we got ready to head back to the highway for another 90 minute drive to our hotel in Birmingham, a jet passing overhead provided a photogenic moment.
Driving into the setting sun was a challenge and our detour meant that we didn't reach our hotel until quite late, but it was worth it. Nice to remember times when the U. S. was reaching for the stars.
Here's the map with our route down to Birmingham shown in yellow.
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