[4] Located on the east coast of Florida, KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).

[7][8] Additionally, the center manages launch of robotic and commercial crew missions and researches food production and in-situ resource utilization for off-Earth exploration.

[11] Among the unique facilities at KSC are the 525-foot (160 m) tall Vehicle Assembly Building for stacking NASA's largest rockets, the Launch Control Center, which conducts space launches at KSC, the Operations and Checkout Building, which houses the astronauts' dormitories and suit-up area, a Space Station factory, and a 3-mile (4.8 km) long Shuttle Landing Facility.

[12] President John F. Kennedy's 1961 goal of a crewed lunar landing by 1970 required an expansion of launch operations.

Therefore, the decision was made to build a new LOC site located adjacent to Cape Canaveral on Merritt Island.

1 of the Atlantic Missile Range") under the designation "John F. Kennedy Space Center", spawning some confusion joining the two in the public mind.

NASA administrator James E. Webb clarified this by issuing a directive stating the Kennedy Space Center name applied only to the LOC, while the Air Force issued a general order renaming the military launch site Cape Kennedy Air Force Station.

KSC is a major central Florida tourist destination and is approximately one hour's drive from the Orlando area.

The Apollo 11 launch included crewmembers Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin, and attracted a record-breaking 650 million television viewers.

[23] As the Space Shuttle was being designed, NASA received proposals for building alternative launch-and-landing sites at locations other than KSC, which demanded study.

Disadvantages included: its inability to safely launch military missions into polar orbit, since spent boosters would be likely to fall on the Carolinas or Cuba; corrosion from the salt air; and frequent cloudy or stormy weather.

Although building a new site at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico was seriously considered, NASA announced its decision in April 1972 to use KSC for the shuttle.

In 1976, the VAB's south parking area was the site of Third Century America, a science and technology display commemorating the U.S. bicentennial.

The frequent number of flights allowed for quick evolution of the vehicles, as engineers gathered data, learned from anomalies and implemented upgrades.

LSP payloads such as the Mars Science Laboratory have been processed at KSC before being transferred to a launch pad on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

These experiences were incorporated into the design of the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF), which began construction in 1991.

Today KSC continues to process ISS payloads from across the world before launch along with developing its experiments for on orbit.

[38][39] The Headquarters (HQ) Building houses offices for the Center Director, library, film and photo archives, a print shop and security.

However, in 1965, the library moved into three separate sections in the newly opened NASA headquarters before eventually becoming a single unit in 1970.

As one of ten NASA center libraries in the country, their collection focuses on engineering, science, and technology.

The library is not open to the public but is available for KSC, Space Force, and Navy employees who work on site.

[58] As a part of promoting commercial space industry growth in the area and the overall center as a multi-user spaceport,[59][60] KSC leases some of its properties.

Here are some major examples: The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, operated by Delaware North since 1995, has a variety of exhibits, artifacts, displays and attractions on the history and future of human and robotic spaceflight.

The complex also includes the separate Apollo/Saturn V Center, north of the VAB and the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame, six miles west near Titusville.

The clock was originally built and installed in 1969 and listed with the flagpole in the National Register of Historic Places in January 2000.

The conservative estimate by NASA is that the Space Center will experience 5 to 8 inches of sea level rise by the 2050s.

[79][80] Since KSC's formation, ten NASA officials have served as directors, including three former astronauts (Crippen, Bridges and Cabana): In addition to being frequently featured in documentaries, Kennedy Space Center has been portrayed on film many times.

Films with scenes at KSC include:[92] The location appears as a major plot point in the finale of Stone Ocean, the 6th part of the manga and anime series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

KSC is also one of the two primary settings of the 1965–1970 television series I Dream Of Jeannie (along with a home in nearby Cocoa Beach), though it was filmed entirely in Los Angeles.