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Special NASA Report 
KSC Release No. 130 - 02
SANTA AND KSC LANDING TEAM SET FOR POSSIBLE CHRISTMAS EVE CONTINGENCY
As children in Central Florida and around the world prepare
to celebrate
Christmas, Santa and NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) landing
convoy team
are rumored to have conducted secret exercises to address any
possible
contingencies that might arise during Santa's annual space flight.
Continuing a long-standing tradition at KSC, the Shuttle Landing
Facility
(SLF), also known this time of the year as the "Sleigh"
Landing Facility,
will be available to Santa if an emergency landing is required
during his
mission. Built in 1975, the landing strip is 300 feet wide and
15,000 feet
long, with 1,000-foot overruns at each end. It extends from northwest
to
southeast and is located about three miles from the 525-foot-tall
Vehicle
Assembly Building.
In the event of an emergency landing by the reindeer-propelled
sleigh, the
KSC landing convoy team will be available to assist Santa once
the sleigh is
safely on the ground.
The KSC landing convoy vehicles will be "on-call"
beginning the afternoon of
Dec. 24. The primary functions of the convoy team will be to
provide
immediate service to the sleigh after landing, assist in Santa's
egress from
the toy-laden vehicle, and prepare it for towing to the Sleigh
Processing
Facility (located adjacent to the Orbiter Processing Facility)
for emergency
repairs, if required.
A new state-of-the-art convoy command vehicle, commissioned
in June 2002,
will lead the convoy. The new vehicle is equipped to control
critical
communications between the Shuttle orbiter, the crew and the
Launch Control
Center, to monitor the health of the orbiter systems, and to
direct convoy
operations at the SLF.
A recent modification to the new command vehicle also permits
specially
trained KSC personnel to privately communicate with Santa via
closed loop
state-of-the-art circuits and guide his reindeer to a safe landing
if the
sleigh's navigational systems fail.
Denny Gagen, KSC's convoy commander reports, "I have
no comment on whether
the emergency simulations with Santa did or did not occur, but
I can say
with certainty that the Shuttle orbiter is not the only 'orbiter'
with which
the new convoy command vehicle can communicate."
According to inside sources, the convoy personnel on call
will be prepared
to don SCAPE suits, (Self-Contained Atmospheric Protective Ensemble
suits),
for protection from the expected large amounts of ice and snow
that
frequently accumulate on high-flying sleighs.
Once Santa's egress procedures are complete, the Crew Transport
Vehicle
(CTV), also used by disembarking Shuttle crews, will be moved
into position
on the sleigh's port side. A KSC physician will be on stand-by
to board the
sleigh and conduct a physical examination, if required. (Typically,
milk and
cookies are all that is necessary during stops.) The CTV will
allow Santa
the privacy to leave his sleigh and change from his red, fur-lined
flight
suit into his work clothes. He can then perform any necessary
mechanical
repairs before returning to his scheduled deliveries.
In the event the emergency is not mechanical in nature, the
SLF Landing Aids
Control Building (LACB) is equipped with telephones, a clean-rag
canister,
water faucets and a hose, an eyewash rack, a snack bar, and bathrooms.
When asked to comment on this emergency contingency plan,
Santa refused,
citing a heavy workload this time of year. Queries forwarded
to his Public
Affairs Office went unanswered.
Thanks to Bruce Buckingham at NASA for the above press release.
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Also visit these related sites:
Read this Special Report from NASA: Santa to Help Test New Control Tower You'll also enjoy Santa Claus Installs X-MAS Robotic Arm on Sleigh
NASA - For more information on Santa directly from NASA, use the search box on this page to search for "Santa." You will be amazed how much Santa is involved in the space program.
NORAD Santa Tracking - The North American Air Defense Command will be tracking Santa's flight on Christmas Eve. Click on the flag appropriate to your language.
Santa and his Reindeer - Track Santa and his famous reindeer as they fly around the world this Christmas Eve. Also get the inside scoop on the sleigh and Donner's real name.
Web of Christmas - From around the world we say Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Some surprising background on our holiday traditions, plus Christmas greetings in a hundred languages.
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First Published: December 20, 2002
Last Updated: April 6, 2008
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