Launch Complex 14
Explore the historical launch complex 14 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida with this six (6) 360-degree panoramic virtual tour of the abandoned aerospace property. Do you like urban exploring? Here is a map with tons of GPS locations for you to get out and explore.
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About the abandoned location
Launch Complex 14 (LC-14) is a historical launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on the east coast of Florida. The complex consists of a blockhouse, a ramp, and a launch site. The ramp to the site is 24 feet wide by 92 feet long with a gradual rise of 22 feet to the launch stand. The stand itself was 60 feet wide by 78 feet long and supported the umbilical tower, which stood about 85 feet above the launch stand. The building at the launch pad was about 57 feet by 20 feet and extended under the ramp. The blockhouse sites about 750 feet away from the launch pad and is 60 feet in diameter.
In January 1956, the U.S Army Corps of Engineers started construction of the $4,308,000 launch site. One year later, the site was ready for occupancy. By August of 1957, the Air Force accepted the launch complex. In June 1957, the first of five Atlas A rockets were launched with the last one launching on April 5th, 1958. Between September 14th, 1958, and January 16th, 1959, three Atlas B rockets were launched.
Following the Atlas B launches, 4 Atlas D rockets were launched between May 19th, 1959, and October 22nd, 1960. During the years 1959 through 1960, some minor modifications were made to launch complex 14 to support the Mercury Program. Some of these modifications included an emergency egress tower, a gantry modified to accommodate the new escape tower rocket, and a white room.
Between September 9th, 1959, and July 29th, 1960, two unmanned Mercury-Atlas capsule missions were launched. Following those launches, two Atlas Agena A Missile Defense Alarm System (MIDAS) missions sponsored by DARPA were launched between February 26th, 1960, and May 24th, 1960.
On February 21st, April 25th, and September 13th, 1961, three successful unmanned Mercury-Atlas missions were launched. Following those three successful missions on November 29th, 1961, the Air Force launches Enos, a chimpanzee aboard a Mercury-Atlas rocket. After the launch of Enos, 4 manned Mercury-Atlas missions were launched. Friendship 7 on February 20th, 1962, Aurora 7 on May 24th, 1962, Sigma 7 on October 3rd, 1962, and Faith 7 on May 15th, 1963.
Later between the years of 1963 through 1965, launch complex 14 is modified for the Atlas-Agena program with a new 101-foot umbilical tower, Agena fuel system, a spacecraft clean room. The egress tower that was there was dismantled at this time to accommodate the Agena-Gemini target vehicle.
There is a nearby monument that was dedicated to the Mercury 7 Project. The monument was placed on November 10th, 1964. The monument stands 13 feet tall and is made from stainless steel. A time capsule was buried beneath the monument and to be opened in the year 2464. Inside the time capsule are items such as photographs, reports, a movie, and other memorabilia to give historians a glimpse at what it was like for man’s first steps to getting into space.
October 25th, 1965 through November 11th, 1966, the complex saw 7 Atlas-Agena D target vehicles for manned Titan Gemini missions. After November 11th, 1966, the pad becomes inactive, and later in February 1967 was deactivated. On October 31th 1973, launch complex 14 is abandoned in place. On December 1st 1976, the service tower is demolished.
In April 1984 the complex is designated a National Historic Landmark. Later in 1998, the blockhouse was restored and converted into meeting space to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the last Mercury flight.
Learn more about the historical launch complex on the Air Force Space and Missile Museums website. View more abandoned launch pads such as launch complex 17, launch complex 34 or launch complex 16 that were photographed in 360-degree spherical imagery. You can also check out our top abandoned places in Florida page.
Here is an 8K 360VR video of the historic LC-14
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Equipment used to capture the 360-degree panoramic images:
- Canon DSLR camera
- Canon 8-15mm fisheye
- Manfrotto tripod
- Custom rotating tripod head
Do you have 360-degree panoramic images captured in an abandoned location? Send your images to Abandonedin360@gmail.com. If you choose to go out and do some urban exploring in your town, here are some safety tips before you head out on your Urbex adventure. If you want to start shooting 360-degree panoramic images, you might want to look onto one-click 360-degree action cameras.
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