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Abandoned Rocket Facility in Florida
This article details the story of an abandoned Aerojet-Dade rocket facility located in Homestead, Florida. Built in 1963 with a $3 million Air Force contract, the plant housed a 150-foot deep silo containing the largest solid-fuel rocket motor ever built. The facility, situated in the Everglades, was used to test the rocket three times between 1965 and 1967.
NASA's Decision and the Facility's Fate
NASA's decision to switch to liquid-fuel rocket engines led to the project's cancellation in 1969, leaving the rocket and facility abandoned. The facility's remote location, accessible only by a six-mile road impassable for vehicles, adds to its isolated and eerie atmosphere.
Photographer's Account and Remaining Structures
Photographer Naaman Fletcher documented the site in 2010, highlighting the remaining structures: a large steel shed, industrial-size fans, and, most notably, the 10-story-high rocket still residing within the underground silo – the deepest hole ever dug in Florida. The size of the rocket required transportation by barge, necessitating a canal to the Atlantic Ocean for transport to Cape Canaveral.
Impact and Legacy
The AeroJet 26 Rocket's tests generated significant blasts visible from 50 miles away in Miami. The abandoned facility stands as a reminder of the scale of this project and NASA's shifting priorities in space exploration. The site remains untouched, a ghost town to this day.
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Naaman Fletcher
In 1963, Aerojet General was given a $3 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to build a manufacturing and testing site for rockets that would send astronauts to the moon.
The plant was constructed in the center of Florida's Everglades in the town of Homestead.
Beneath a large metal shed, a 150-foot deep silo housed the largest solid-fuel rocket motor ever built. The rocket was tested three times between 1965 and 1967.
Then NASA dropped the project. The agency decided to go with liquid-fuel rocket engines instead. The plant was closed in 1969, leaving the rocket behind. Â
Photographer Naaman Fletcher, who blogs at What's Left of Birmingham, visited the abandoned facility in April 2010.Â
Here's what remains. Â
To reach the deserted plant, Fletcher had to bike six miles down a road that is inaccessible to vehicles.
Naaman Fletcher
The main complex, seen in the distance, sits on the edge of a swamp.
Naaman Fletcher
"There wasn't another human around me for miles. Very eerie," Fletcher told me.
Naaman Fletcher
A large steel shed, though rusted and overgrown with plants, remains mostly intact.
Naaman Fletcher
Industrial-size fans surround the walls.
Naaman Fletcher
Beneath the rusted floor is a 10-story-high rocket.
Naaman Fletcher
The underground silo is the deepest hole ever dug in Florida.
Naaman Fletcher
Fifty years later and the rocket's still there!
Naaman Fletcher
The rocket was so large it could only be transported by barge.
Naaman Fletcher
So a canal was dug from the manufacturing plant to the Atlantic Ocean in order to get the rockets to Cape Canaveral, where the space shuttles are launched.
Naaman Fletcher
The AeroJet 26 Rocket was tested three times between 1965 and 1967, creating a blast that could be seen 50 miles away in Miami, writes Fletcher.
Naaman Fletcher
But AeroJet never got the contract from NASA to build rockets.
Naaman Fletcher
The space agency decided to use liquid fuel instead of solid fuel.
Naaman Fletcher
The plant was closed in 1969.
Naaman Fletcher
It's been a ghost town ever since.
Naaman Fletcher
See more man-made wonders.
Stefan Krasowski/Rapid Travel Chai