Technology and Nature

Technology and Nature. Canaveral National Seashore. , Along the southern horizon stand the rocket launching complexes of Kennedy Space Center. From the two nearest pads, the nation’s space exploration program is conducted bt the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). , In the early 1960s NASA acquired the land for the space program. Much of the area not immediately needed for facilities was designated as a safety and security zone. NASA invited the Department of the Interior to manage the otherwise unused natural areas. , In 1963 Congress established Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In 1975 Canaveral National Seashore was created as a unit of the National Park Service. NASA retains ownership of most of the land within these two preserves, and thereby ultimately controls public access and activity within them. This partnership of three federal agencies benefits wildlife in a fragile ecosystem, yet does not compromise the dynamic technologies of the space program. , To learn more about NASA’s activities, visit the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, located five miles east of Titusville on county road 405.