KSC-2011-3142

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Media representatives participate in a Now and Future Tour at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Here, they make a stop at the Shuttle Landing Facility's midfield to learn about the potential for private companies and government agencies to use the runway for a diversity of launch systems, including orbital and suborbital flights. Other stops along the tour included Launch Pad 39B and Orbiter Processing Facility-2 (OPF-2). Pad B is being restructured for future use. Its new design will feature a "clean pad" for rockets to come with their own launcher, making it more versatile for a number of vehicles. OPF-2 is where shuttle Discovery is being prepared for future public display at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin