NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located about an hour away from Orlando, Florida, are technically two separate launch sites in the same location. Combined, the two host several rocket launches throughout the year using SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets and United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Atlas V and Delta 4 rockets. The area is called America’s Space Coast for good reason: it played host to all five of the space shuttles and launched the Saturn V rockets that brought Apollo astronauts to the moon. (NASA has recently signed over Apollo 11's historic launch pad to SpaceX for that company’s upcoming crewed launches, and they’ve already had their first uncrewed launches from that pad.)
Kennedy Space Center offers official viewing for many launches at both sites, which are announced via the center's email newsletter and eventually appear on the center's website as well. Depending on the timing, tickets to the launches are either included in the price of a Kennedy Space Center tour or must be bought separately. The launch-viewing trips always leave from the center's visitor complex and are generally based at the Apollo Saturn V Center or the LC-39 Observation Gantry (which is located at Kennedy Space Center's launch site).
Tours from the visitor's complex will also often bring visitors near the launch pad ahead of time to get a close look at the rocket. [Photos: The Kennedy Space Center, NASA's Historic Spaceport]
"Depending on the time of day and the launch, it's always different," Cooper said. "But they've been selling tickets to the LC-39 [Observation] Gantry, which is one of the bus stops on the tour, and that generally allows them to get closer than any other location at this point. Especially for an Atlas launch, it's closer than even the media gets."
It's also possible to watch the launches from the visitor's complex itself, which is even closer than many of the viewing sites, but trees block out the view of the launch pad. Occasionally, the center will sell tickets to view the launch from the NASA Causeway, Cooper said. That is also a very close view (and is where much of the media watches the launch). All of the center's sites offer live commentary and audio from mission control.
One major caveat: As mentioned earlier, launches will sometimes be delayed or rescheduled to occur on different days, and visitors who go out to the site will have to buy new tickets to go out another time, even if the launch doesn't happen.
"We've got the closest viewing locations on the Space Coast to see, to hear and to feel these rocket launches as they thunder from the launch pads," Farmer, Kennedy Space Center's public relations manager, told Space.com. "It's a truly amazing experience, and one that I recommend everyone try and do at least once in their lifetime."
Viewers can also watch launches from outside locations, Cooper said. The best for Atlas launches is Playalinda Beach, located just a few miles away from the site and open only in the daytime. Other than the ticketed locations and that beach, the next best place is Port Canaveral, right near where the cruise ships are, he said, on Route 401. It's a limited viewing area, and only a certain number of cars can park before it fills up, so it's necessary to get there early. It's the best nonticketed location for night launches.
After that, there are areas on Route 528 where it's possible to pull over and watch the launch, and you can go to further away beaches. But the above are the closest public spots you can find.
Every launch is different, Cooper said: Check the timing details and the launchpad location each time, but it will always vary based on the rocket and the time of day (and whether Kennedy Space Center is offering a place to watch).
NEXT: Upcoming Cape Canaveral Launches
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