A 154-foot SpaceX rocket booster has arrived at its new home outside of the DISH Network Corporate Offices in Littleton. The rocket is a Falcon 9, which is the first orbital-class reusable rocket in the world, and one that SpaceX uses for repeated launches.
This particular booster was donated by SpaceX and is being repurposed as an exhibit that DISH will oversee, providing the necessary maintenance and security of the exhibit. Crossing over Little’s Creek Trail and sitting atop three pedestals on the DISH Network campus, the rocket sits about 12 feet in the air.
Contractors are expected to finish the construction of the exhibit site — including fencing, ground leveling, a walkway and signage — by the end of the year. The exhibit site will be available for public viewing and accessible from the Mary Carter Greenway Trail and Little’s Creek Trail. There will also be wayfinding signs to guide visitors from downtown Littleton and the Littleton Downtown RTD station, as there will not be public parking available at the exhibit.
The public display will be one of only three of its kind in the country. One Falcon 9 rocket booster sits outside of the Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island in Florida, while another is at Space Center Houston in Texas. Littleton made sense as a third location because of the city’s connection with aerospace and DISH being a leader in the industry.