The latest attraction, about to join Epcot. This one has been back and forth, up and down. Originally, Horizon's stood in this location, but when it lost sponsorship from General Electric, it just sat there, occasionally openining during busy times for the parks. Talk surfaced about replacing it with something designed by NASA, so it closed. Then NASA appeared to back out of it. So they had this plan, this empty space, with nothing to go in. Finally a new sponsor arrived, COMPAQ. But then they got bought out by HP. Finally, after much back and forth, work began. So after many years of waiting, we have a new thrill ride, and when I say thrill ride I mean it. This thing will litterally have even the most tame of you screaming.
I have gotten to ride this ride, and I'm still speachless. This to me was a success from start to finish for Disney. It not only entertains you, but also educates you - all be it, a simplified version - to what it would be like to be launched into space. So sit back, keep your eyes open, and face forward cause this one will knock the socks off ya, LITERALLY. This ride is definitely not for everyone. You can wait in line with everyone else, but when they go to load into the capsules, you can walk strait through to the exit and not actually ride (my father did this, he get's very motion sick). I was even a little queezy afterwards, and I can handle almost anything.
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If you think the pre-show looks futuristic, well, it is. The storyline is set for 2036, but the all the technologies mentioned are actual being researched or used by NASA already
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The colored markers on the model of the moon at the entrance show the 29 landing sights of manned and un-manned missions by the US and USSR to the moon from 1959-1976, the single red marker marks the landing sight of Apollo 11, where man first stepped on the moon
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There are 4 Centrifuges, with 10 capsules each, and 4 persons per capsule
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650+ Imagineers spent a collective 350,000 hours on development
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Produces less G-Forces than an actual Rollercoaster (an average of 2 G's, while the actual space shuttle produces 3 G's, Space Mountain reaches 5 G's for quick bursts)
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There are 4 Ride bays, each containing 10 X-2 Rocket Capsules, each can carry up to 4 riders
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Look around the planetary plaza for quotes from the likes of Plato, Galileo, and US President John F. Kennedy
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Opened August 15, 2003, replacing Horizons
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