AUGUST 201 4 SUNRAYS | 67
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Left During her tour of Level 9, writer Sandy
Nielsen was able to viewmany behind-the-scenes
features of NASA, including a prototype Orion
space capsule that may one day take astronauts to
Mars. Right Sandy was able to view “Robonauts,”
which are being developed for future space use.
Bottom One of the highlights of the tour in-
cluded Mission Control for the International Space
Station. Video monitors (left and right) show real-
time progress over South America.
reminiscent of a college campus, and is on land
that, actually, is leased for $1 a year from Rice
University. NASA even has its own power and
water facilities on site.
Two astronauts, one each from the United King-
domand Germany, are currently in training there.
In 2012, the U.S. selected eight Americans from a
pool of 6,300 applicants to go through a two-year
training program. If successful, completion of the
program makes the trainees eligible for a future
space flight.
Until the next generation of U.S. space capsules is
ready to fly, astronauts will get to the International
Space Station courtesy of the Russian shuttle pro-
gram—but not without a price. Cost of a ticket
these days is about $70 million a seat; makes the
$89.95 for a Level 9 ticket look like a bargain.
Tickets for the Level 9 tour also include general
admission into Space Center Houston, featuring
the NASA Tram Tour, the multi-screen movie
Blast Off
, and more. Reservations for the Level 9
tour can be made online at
.
