Nasa's Gateway to Space.
They were seen on the most significant missions like Apollo, Skylab and the Space Shuttle. They've been used for the SpaceX Falcon Heavy and they'll be there on the upcoming SLS missions but they're hardly ever talked about and without them who simply wouldn't be able to get the rockets off the ground, what are they? They were the gateway to the moon and the starting point for every space shuttle mission. NASA launch pads 39A and 39B so what do these massive feats of engineering do and just how important are they. Launch pad 39A NASA has over 40 launch pads in various locations from the US mainland to the Pacific. Their position chosen to best get the spacecraft to the correct orbit and to be safely away from population centers. Cape Canaveral in Florida is better for launching spacecraft requiring a west-east orbit and others like Vandenberg in California are preferred for spacecraft requiring a north/south orbit. But wherever they are the launch...