End of Space Shuttle era could spell end for former crew NASA quarters.
The hangar that served as crew quarters for Mercury astronauts will be coming down. NASA is in the midst of a post-shuttle era examination of all its facilities at Kennedy Space Centre and Cape Canaveral. The goal: determine which facilities will be needed to move ahead with the development of new rockets and spacecraft for deep space missions; which facilities might entice commercial space taxi companies; and which facilities no longer have a reason for being.
“Unfortunately, there are some buildings that aren’t sustainable anymore, some that we can’t really afford to maintain,” said Tom Engler, deputy manager of the Center Planning and Development Office at KSC. On that list: Hangar S.
Hangar S was where engineers checked out Mercury spacecraft and where NASA set up crew quarters for Mercury astronauts. It was where Dr. William Douglas, the personal physician of the astronauts, performed preflight medical tests; where Joe Schmitt suited up the astronauts; where the astronauts walked out the north door, boarded a step van, and headed to the launch pad.
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