![]() Home to the test rockets, they test rockets to research the rockets. Five lunar landing research vehicles were tested at the base, one of which is available for viewing. Other experiments have included "aerospike" engines and supersonic rockets. The center also conducted the Controlled Impact Demonstration in 1984, a test in which a Boeing 720 aircraft was remotely piloted and intentionally crashed in order to study fuel additives meant to reduce fires in the case of a crash. Before NASA, NACA ("National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics") operated and tested the transsonic Douglas Skyrocket. Known as the Dryden Flight Research Center until the name was changed in 2014, this center has played an important role in the history of flight. 34.9507 -117.887 3 NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center ( Dryden Flight Research Center).The world's largest compass rose is carved on the lakebed beside Armstrong Flight Research Center South Gate is Lancaster but it is closed. ![]() This is called the West Gate, If you are on Route 58, take Exit 186, then get on the road, and you will enter via the North Gate. And leave Rosamond, and never take any turn and enter the base by a gate, and continue to enter the base. So, if you are driving from Rosamond, or driving on the Antelope Valley Freeway from Los Angeles, Mojave, or Palmdale, you shall take exit 55, and if from Palmdale, take a right, and if from Mojave, take a left. That is the only civilian gateway to enter Edwards. The Space Shuttles that didn't land on the Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center in Florida did it on Edwards AFB's dry lakebed runways. Ever since, Edwards is a NASA base as well. The air base was built in 1933 and opened for use in 1948, for the military and NACA and in 1958, NACA became NASA. From 1876 there was an unsettled water stop at this point, for the Southern Pacific Railroad. Note that this is an active military base so ID will be required and visitors may be required to submit to a search.Įdwards AFB is best known for being similar to Area 51, but test and experimental aircraft will come out of the hangar to experiment. There is a museum on the base and tours are available. ( updated Jun 2015)Įdwards AFB is a massive testing and training ground for the Air Force and NASA southeast of Mojave. Rosamond Blvd ( take the 14 south to Rosamond, then take Rosamond Blvd east out of town and follow it directly to the base), ☏ +1 661 277-3510. Admission to the flightline, display aircraft, and featured event speakers is free.Įdwards Air Force Base Balls 8, the iconic NASA B-52 mothershipģ4.905556 -117.883611 2 Edwards Air Force Base, 1 S. A tram tour of the flightline is often available during the event. The airport flightline is open to the public, and many aircraft are typically on display during the monthly "Plane Crazy Saturday" event, held on the 3rd Saturday of each month, and sponsored by the Mojave Transportation Museum. In any case, seeing dozens of huge airplanes parked next to futuristic flight vehicles makes this airstrip in the desert a worthwhile stop. In addition the airlines park many older planes here, either because the planes are not required for service or because the plane has reached its end-of-life. The huge airstrip at Mojave is used by research companies for test flights, and is most famous as the home of Burt Rutan's company Scaled Composites which in 2004 became the first private company to put a human into space. Also, several people use golf carts, 4-wheelers, and off-road motorbikes, as the nearby desert is an off-road motor sports haven. Automobile traffic is the most common, as sidewalks and bike lanes are not as common as in the average town. The town center section of Mojave is relatively small, and easily navigable by bicycle or foot. Mojave has no local taxicab service, however of you are willing to pay a $25-50 minimum fare, you can call for taxicab service from:Ĭalifornia City Yellow Cab (California City), +1 76. More distant cities include Los Angeles (95 miles south on SR-14), Las Vegas (225 miles east on SR-58), San Francisco (345 miles west on SR-58), and Reno (375 miles north on SR-14). California State Route 58 loops around Mojave to the east and north, providing access from Bakersfield to the west and Barstow to the east. California State Route 14 passes on the west side of Mojave, providing access to Mojave from the Antelope Valley to the south and US Highway 395 to the north.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |