On Tuesday morning, April 30, Kent Mayor Dana Ralph, along with Boeing historian Michael Lombardi and Lunar Rover alumni Dennis McKillip and Maine Tonkin helped unveil a new, informative galactic display at the accesso ShoWare Center.

The Lunar Rover replica display includes an astronaut figure, realistic space backdrop and plenty of selfie opportunities, but it’s true intent is to raise money for the replica to be built in Kherson Park.

Speaking of selfie stations – even Mayor Ralph got in on the fun, posing in the spacesuit:

Mayor Dana Ralph

This display is the first stop in celebrating the 50th anniversary of Boeing winning the NASA contract to build the Lunar Rovers used in Apollo Missions 15, 16 and 17. Built in Kent at the Boeing Space Center, the Lunar Rovers explored the moon’s surface further than any previous lunar expedition.

The Lunar Rover replica will be unveiled in October 2019, and the astronaut will eventually voyage to Kherson Park in the heart of downtown Kent to stand by its spacecraft.

The new Lunar Rover replica will be an interactive, life-sized vessel designed to celebrate Kent Valley’s involvement in space history and inspire future generations to pursue out-of-this-world opportunities. The Lunar Roving Vehicle is a proud testament to the region’s continuous space innovation and history.

ABOUT THE LUNAR ROVER
Just three Lunar Roving Vehicles (LRV’s) went to the moon; only six men have driven them. Never has so much imagination and research gone into the production of a wheeled vehicle, making possible the greatest manned explorations of the Moon, and they came from Kent, Washington!

Commonly known as the Lunar Rover or Moon Buggy, it’s history’s first and only manned surface transportation system designed to operate on the Moon. At its Kent-based Space Center, the Boeing Company designed, tested and built the four-wheeled vehicle for NASA that was last used during Apollo missions 15, 16 and 17 between 1971-72.

Three Kent-built Lunar Rovers remain on the Moon.

DONATE ONLINE NOW
Help the city and Kent Downtown Partnership land this great new display by donating online here:

For more info, click here.

VIDEO
Here are a couple of great videos showing our local creations on the Moon:

Kherson Park is located at 307 W Gowe Street:

Scott Schaefer

Founder/Publisher/Editor. Three-time National Emmy Award winning Writer (“Bill Nye the Science Guy”), Director, Producer, Journalist and more...