The Lexington advertiser. [volume] (Lexington, Miss.) 1904-1985, 1962-06-07
Man On The Moon

Mississippi is going to help put a
man m the moon and bring him safe
ly back to earth - and within the
decade.
Regardless of how one may feel
about tampering with that ole man in
the moon we've been seeing for years,
we must confess the picture presented
by Americas manned lunar program is
awesome in scope and thrilling to the
heart and mind.
Let all M~ississippians plan now to
meet the needs of the Space Age IN
which we live and welcome this ire
mendous challenge to become an lnte-
grail part of the nation we love whose
citizenship we claim. Let us all open
our eyes to the marvellous opportunity
presented our state and its people to
go forward and become part and par
eel of this new day of progress, peace
and prosperity.
Look and see what is happening
in south Mississippi today:
Land is being purchased for the
5000 million Mississippi Test Facility
in Hancock and Pearl River Counties
and in st. Tammany Parish Louisiana,
an area of SOM al $50 acres. The
land being acquired through outright
purchase is roughly about five miles
square and contains 1850 acres. The
easement area, to be used as a buffer
zone for ~dissipating the loud and low
frequency sound waves emanating from
the test site, surrounds the purchased
land area for about siy miles and con-
tains about 128,4 400 acres.
Total cost of purchased lands and
easements acquired will be approx
mately SIG million. Land purchases
will be completed this summer, by
August 1, and the easement area by
July 1, 1864, by a Corps of Engineer
personnel operating out of a real estate
AWE -FfEH - - - - sF h 4MEF" &E"r q
project office in Bay st. Louis.
The test facility will take two
years to build and is expected to be
operational by the middle of 1864. In
the interim workers will be used, be-
ginning this fall, to construct the
facility which includes stands for re-
search and development and acceptance
tests of stages to be used in support
of the manned lunar program. In addi-
tion to the test towers there will be
built an office or administration build
ing, an engineering building, central
data facility, and control center. The
test support area will include shops,
sheds, and warehouses for preparation
facilities and for maintenance. A rail-
road spur and fuel storage area will
also be required.
Cost of operating the Mississippi
Test Facility after it is fully COM
pleted will be around s22 million an
nually. This figure is subject to re-
vision, probably upward. Two thousand
people will be employed. + will be a
facility of and operated under the
direction Of the George G. Marshall
Space Flight Center at Huntsville, Ala
bama by the National Aeronautics and
SPACE Administration (NASAl, with
DR.. George n. Ceolnlstan in charge.
The Mobile lAlabama) District,
Corps of Engineers, is responsible for
all design and construction at the
Mississippi Test Center after criteria
has been approYed by the Marshall
Center at Huntsville. Area develop
ment planning for the Mississippi Test
Facility has been contracted fbY
NASA) with a st. Louis architect
engineer firm, s~yerdrup and Parcel.
Mississippi was selected as the
site of the test facility primarily be-
cause Of its location ear the bis
Michopd Qperatien in New Orleans Of