BUT CAN'T MOVE AWAY
NASA's launch pads and multi-billion dollar buildings need to be near water so they are located close to the sea. But being so close to water is posing a huge challenge as well. There is nothing much that NASA can do except try to move as far back from the sea as possible, but ... not too far.
This is NASA's Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas. It is where engineers monitor space missions and rocket launches. AFP PHOTO/NASA
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has major centres where several missions to space have been launched and astronauts were trained. They are located along the coast in the United States. Easy access to lots of water is necessary for launching rockets and testing spacecraft. But rising sea levels, erosion and fierce hurricanes have already caused a lot of damage to NASA centres.
NASA is now busily building seawalls where possible and moving some buildings farther from the sea. At a very important NASA site in Virginia which has launched 16,000 rockets, the sea level has risen 23 centimetres since 1945. It is extremely costly and difficult to move NASA's centres to an entirely different location because so much has been built up at the centres already.
A rocket is being prepared for lift-off in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Notice how close to the sea the space centre is. AFP PHOTO / HANDOUT / NASA / Bill Ingalls
One of the things that worry NASA most is the combination of hurricanes and higher sea levels. When sea levels are higher, hurricanes can cause a lot more damage because of the strong and high waves that can travel a long way inland and bring total destruction.
NASA is not alone. Rising sea levels are also threatening other historic sites across the US, such as the Statue of Liberty in New York.
Why are rocket launch pads located close to the sea?
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If a fire breaks out at the launch pad, fire-fighting helicopters and airplanes would have a shorter distance to travel between the fire and the sea where they can scoop water from.
- When a rocket is launched, parts of the rocket could fall back to Earth or an unfortunate explosion could occur. Being near the sea, it is likely that rocket parts would fall into the sea and away from areas where people live.
Featured image: A rocket is being launched from NASA's Cape Canaveral, Florida. AFP PHOTO/ HO / US AIR FORCE
