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- Aerojet General reportedly built rocket manufacturing plant in 1963, hoping to build rockets for Apollo moon mission
- NASA however ended up choosing liquid-fueled Saturn rockets, meaning Aerojet never got the contract
- The site was abandoned in 1969, along with the rocket in its testing silo, where it has remained for more than 40 years
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Published: 10:26 EDT, 21 February 2014 | Updated: 12:30 EDT, 21 February 2014
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Sitting deep in a 150ft deep hole in the ground in the swampy Florida Everglades lies the largest solid rocket booster ever built - a relic of the American space race.
Standing 10 stories tall and about 20 feet wide, the rocket was originally intended to carry men to the moon.
Aerojet General reportedly built the rocket manufacturing plant in 1963, hoping to build solid fuel rockets for the Apollo moon mission.
In the end, NASA chose liquid-fueled Saturn rockets and Aeroject never got the contract. The site was abandoned in 1969, along with the rocket in its 150-foot deep testing silo, where it has remained for more than 40 years.
According to science writer David Schneider, on Someplacelse.net, the United States Air Force is understood to have provided Aerojet General with $3million to build its manufacturing and testing site in Homestead, Florida.
Between September 25, 1965 and June 17, 1967, three static test firings took place. According to witnesses, the flames on the second test could be seen in Miami
By the time the rocket was tested for the third time, NASA had already made the decision to go with liquid-fueled engines for the expeditions to the moon.
The plant was eventually closed in 1969, with the rocket left behind in the ground.
Lying in a huge hole in the ground underneath the Florida Everglades lies a 10-storey tall and 20ft wide rocket - the largest solid rocket booster ever built
Aerojet-General reportedly built the rocket manufacturing plant in the Everglades, Florida, in 1963, hoping to build solid fuel rockets for the Apollo moon mission
The site was abandoned in 1969, along with the rocket in its 150-foot deep testing silo, where it has remained for more than 40 years
The rocket has been left in its 150ft deep testing silo for more than 40 years after NASA decided to go with the liquid-fueled Saturn rockets for the Apollo moon mission
The United States Air Force is understood to have provided Aerojet General with $3million to build its manufacturing and testing site in Homestead, Florida
Between September 25, 1965 and June 17, 1967, a total of three static test firings took place. According to witnesses, the flames on the second test could be seen in Miami
By the time the rocket was tested for the third time, NASA had already made the decision to go with liquid-fueled engines for the expeditions to the moon
The site is situated down an abandoned road on the fringes of America's greatest swamp
The plant was eventually closed in 1969, with the rocket left behind in the ground. Aerojet reportedly paid $2.50 an acre per year for the annual lease on the land, which included an option to buy up to 25,000 acres more
