The Saturn rocket family is a series of rocket stages that could be stacked
in different configurations as needed to meet a variety of mission
requirements. Example configurations include:
- Saturn IB — 2-stage missions to low earth orbit
- Saturn V — 2-stage heavy-lift to low earth orbit
- Saturn V — 3-stage missions to the moon
These rockets powered the first and only human flights to escape the gravity
of our small blue planet. They remain the most powerful boosters to reach
operational status and the most powerful rockets to carry humans.
There are several sites that have Saturn rocket components on display. All
of these displays are built from mix and match parts using a combination of
production hardware, test articles, mock-ups, and replicas. The listing below
is a stage by stage inventory of those components. To summarize, you can view
these displays at the following locations:
- Alabama Welcome Center, Ardmore, AL — Saturn IB
- Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX — Saturn V
- Kennedy Space Center, Titusville, FL — Saturn IB, Saturn V
- Marshall Space Center, Huntsville, AL — Saturn I, Saturn V, Skylab
- National Air & Space Museum, Washington, DC — Skylab
- NASA Michoud, New Orleans, LA — Saturn V Booster
It is a shame that this flight-ready hardware was built, and in some cases,
stacked and ready to fly, yet it was either scrapped or turned into bird
roosts. This shame turned into a scandal when it was widely reported in the
media that much of this hardware had been allowed to rot almost to the point
of not being salvageable. As a result of the outcry, these artifacts have been
restored, preserved, and in many cases, moved indoors into purpose-built
structures.