Donald Trump not visiting Kennedy Space Center

Donald Trump's campaign has scrubbed plans for the Republican presidential nominee to tour Kennedy Space Center and talk about the space program in Brevard County this week.

On Tuesday afternoon, Trump will instead hold a rally at Orlando Sanford International Airport, a day after stops in St. Augustine and Tampa.

The switch apparently was made because no indoor venue near KSC was approved for a rally that would draw thousands of supporters, and available outdoor venues presented security concerns.

It was not known if Trump might reschedule KSC visit before Election Day. It's possible that a planned roundtable discussion with local aerospace industry leaders, coordinated by the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast and Space Florida, could take place outside Brevard.

Space pioneers celebrate with Haise, Cabana

Astronaut Fred Haise marveled at the “ordered chaos” that was Kennedy Space Center when he first visited in 1966 or 1967, as the spaceport was standing up to support NASA’s Apollo moon program.

“What’s impressive, obviously, is the size and scale of things — the Vehicle Assembly Building, and the vastness of the territory here,” Haise, now 82, remembered Friday in Cocoa Beach. “But really it was the amount of work going on, and the number of people. It was very busy.”

Haise joined KSC Director and shuttle commander Bob Cabana headlining the Missile, Space and Range Pioneers' 50th anniversary banquet at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel.

The lunar module pilot on Apollo 13 in 1970, Haise recalled his reaction after confirming that a Service Module oxygen tank had ruptured, knowing it meant the mission would be aborted and there would be no moon landing.

“I was just sick to my stomach with disappointment,” said Haise, who had trained as a backup crew member for two prior flights. “It was my big chance, and just in a flash it all went away.”

NASA astronaut Kimbrough launches to ISS

Haise shared his initial dismay that the movie “Apollo 13,” released in 1995, had used only one line that the crew actually said — “Houston, we’ve had a problem” — and over-dramatized some of their actions.

Director Ron Howard explained to Haise that he couldn’t tell from tapes of their communications that the crew had faced a life-threatening problem, they were so cool and collected.

Among those at KSC to see Haise blast off was none other than Cabana, then a young Naval Academy midshipman on Physics Honor Society field trip.

Cabana, now 67, remembers seeing Saturn V moon rockets stacked inside the Vehicle Assembly Building, and snapping pictures of Apollo 13 lifting off with his Honeywell Pentax camera.

Unfortunately, the film never caught, yielding no launch shots. But the experience planted a seed in Cabana’s mind about a career in spaceflight.

“I never dreamed I would be an astronaut, or let alone the director of the Kennedy Space Center,” he said. “But seeing that launch and being a part of that, I thought, wow, what an awesome future you can have if you apply yourself.”

KSC today has fewer than 8,000 civil servant and contractor employees, less than a third of the peak during the Apollo years, but Cabana sees the spaceport on track to support deep space NASA missions and commercial operations in the coming years.

“We’ve just got to continue on the path that we’re on,” he said. “Not everybody’s going to be successful, but overall, we here in this community are going to be successful, because we’re not going to be dependent upon one major government program anymore. We’ve diversified.”

Cygnus arriving at ISS

Two days after welcoming a trio of new residents including NASA's Shane Kimbrough, the International Space Station was scheduled to receive another visitor Sunday morning.

Orbital ATK’s unmanned Cygnus cargo ship, carrying more than 5,000 pounds of supplies, was on track to berth at the outpost around 7 a.m.

NASA’s Kate Rubins and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will attempt to grapple the Cygnus with the station’s 58-foot robotic arm.

The Cygnus mission labeled OA-5 began last Monday with a successful return to flight by Orbital ATK’s Antares 230 rocket, redesigned with new Russian RD-181 main engines.

NASA TV coverage begins at 6 a.m. Sunday.

Kimbrough and a pair of cosmonauts arrived around 4 a.m. Friday, completing a two-day trip from Kazakhstan that was the second by an upgraded version of Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft.

“We had a great flight,” said Kimbrough.

The mission is the second for Kimbrough, 49, who visited the Space Coast frequently from a young age to visit his grandparents who lived in Mims.

Space Pioneers Celebtrate 50th Anniversary

GOES-R launch targets mid-November

Launch of a next-generation weather forecasting satellite from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is now targeted for Nov. 16.

Hurricane Matthew delayed the launch of the satellite called GOES-R, once scheduled for Nov. 4. The storm first delayed delivery of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket booster, then shut down Cape operations for several days and caused minor damage to facilities.

GOES is short for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite. The new generation starting with GOES-R including four satellites and an entirely new ground system will cost roughly $10 billion investment over about 30 years.

Melbourne-headquartered Harris Corp. has a major role in the mission, providing the key imaging instrument for the Lockheed Martin spacecraft and designing the ground system.

Trump's space policy: Spur innovation, explore solar system

Space Walk of Fame auction

The U.S. Space Walk of Fame Museum will host another auction of space memorabilia and artifacts between noon and 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29.

Auction proceeds will support the Titusville museum’s education programs and ongoing “refresh” project.

“We have over 300 items up for bid, including signed Mercury, Gemini and Apollo photos, badges and program manuals, flown pieces, space program equipment, artifacts from the Hindenberg, and many more one-of-a-kind items,” said Chuck Jeffrey, the museum’s memorabilia appraiser and authenticator, in a press release.

Bids may be placed online or at the museum at 308 Pine St. in Titusville. Arrive before 11:30 a.m. Saturday to bid live. For more information, visit http://www.invaluable.com and select the auction house “Space Walk of Fame.”

Contact Dean at 321-242-3668 orjdean@floridatoday.com.And follow on Twitter at@flatoday_jdeanand on Facebook atfacebook.com/jamesdeanspace.