They suspended it from the *ceiling* ?

[eppur_se_muova]

Last time I saw this thing, it was disassembled and lying on its side. You could see the engines and all their attached hardware for each stage. I thought that was a better display.

[Boxerfan]

1. Darn...

Thought this was a Catherine the Great thread...

[kentauros]

2. Which one is that?

Is it the one in Florida or Houston? I haven't seen the one in Houston since it was still outside and exposed to the elements (including hurricanes.)

The one thing to consider is that, other than the engines, they were mostly empty space. Liquid-fueled tanks with engines and fins

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Huntsville Space and Rocket Center

Yeah, and a lot of the guts were probably removed first -- still pretty heavy. Fully fueled, 3000 tons. Can't find an estimate of empty weight, but probably less than 5% of that.

Found at waymarking.com: http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3T91_Saturn_V_Space_Vehicle__Huntsville_AL

[kentauros]

4. Iguess if you think about it,

a suspension bridge likely weighs more, and it's also held up by cables
I think what would impress me the most about seeing it that way is the fact that not only do those cables have to hold it up, but have to do so without stretching over time. They're probably over-engineered by at least a factor of three.

Thanks for the link! I only wish they hadn't handed over touring to Disney (at least in Houston; don't know about the other centers.) Self tours were so much better before.