Commercial Launch Control Center

Launch Control Center – Firing Room 4

KSC’s Launch Control Center, located next to the Vehicle Assembly Building, continues its 50-year legacy of supporting launches, with state-of-the-art systems available in four separate control rooms.

External customers can take advantage of Firing Room 4’s four Multi-user Rooms. Each is a separately controlled area that can serve NASA as well as commercial user needs in supporting launch and vehicle operations.  The modernized facilities can support multiple operations simultaneously.

Eight-foot-high walls divide the four areas, with each room measuring 30 by 32 feet. Interconnecting doors between the rooms allow users access to more space if needed.  Partnering with the customer, these spaces can be configured to accommodate up to four distinct users, or a user could occupy additional spaces if required.  In addition, the two upper levels in the front of Firing Room 4 could be configured to support as needed.

KSC’s Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) oversaw renovation of this former Space Shuttle Launch Control Room, beginning work in November 2013. All of the main floor launch consoles were removed, along with all of the shuttle-era cables and wiring beneath the floor.  New energy-efficient LED lighting has been added throughout the firing room.  Sound-absorbing ceiling tiles, acoustic wall covering, and new carpet were installed to provide privacy and reduce noise levels.

EGS is responsible for management of the firing rooms and ensuring that NASA and customers’ requirements will be met. The goal is to be flexible, to be able to provide space for several users on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis.  Customers can bring in their own systems and equipment and connect to existing external communications infrastructure.  Partnering with NASA, customers will be able to configure each room as needed to best meet their particular requirements.

Firing Room 4 features include:

  • Active Sound suppression
  • Security access control to the LCC, FR4, and individual multi-user rooms.
  • Raised flooring
  • HVAC, and humidity control
  • Fire detection and suppression system
  • Electrical Services
    • 480V, 3-phase power at 60Hz
    • 120V, 30amp
    • Uninterruptible power supply (3 – 480V and 1 – 120V)
    • Access to NASA communications infrastructure
    • Paging and area warning audio
    • Large viewing window facing launch pads

In June of 2015, Firing Room 4 was activated for the first time to support a multi-center integrated mission simulation for NASA’s Resource Prospector (RP) payload team.  The primary science payload for RP is the Regolith and Environment Science and Oxygen and Lunar Volatiles Extraction (RESOLVE), which was installed on a lunar rover to analyze soil as part of a mission that launched in 2020 to the polar region of the moon.  One of the control rooms was customized for the RP team, and was used to support simulation operations.  The RESOLVE team also used the firing room for subsequent flight simulations, the flight mission and the entire RESOLVE payload.