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AACREDITUNION.ORG | 23 This launch is a beginning, not an end. The 27 engines and twin boost- ers makes SpaceX's Falcon Heavy the most powerful rocket operating today, and its price tag (tens of millions of dol- lars cheaper than current competition) makes it the most affordable way ever devised to reach deep space. To watch it roar into space is to imagine crewed trips to the Moon, colonies on Mars and mining facilities on asteroids. And tickets to ride this rocket are avail- able to those who can pay. The Falcon Heavy launch is the largest, loudest sign that the spacefl ight is ready to grow away from only government customers and become a true industry. For a long time, KSC was a great place to see the best of spacefl ight's past. Tours of the Apollo control rooms and Space Shuttle displays gave visitors the idea that Kennedy's best days were behind it. After 2011, when the shuttle retired, KSC was shedding jobs and closing facilities. These days Kennedy boasts fresh missions, new spacecraft, increasing employment and signs that more is coming. It's not just SpaceX who is making this happen at KSC. Boeing is working on a crewed space capsule and drone spaceplane. Blue Origin, a privately owned aerospace manufacturer set up by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, is building a rocket-manufacturing factory outside the gates. The United Launch Alli- ance, which provides launches for the government, is bringing new hardware to the spaceport. Stratolaunch, a com- pany owned by Paul Allen that wants to launch rockets from the largest airplane ever built, also hopes to soon operate from KSC. Getty Images