Space Mountain - Space Station 77
Posted: Apr Tue 12, 2005 1:16 pm
Here's some great information I came across regarding the new Space Mountain. Thought you would enjoy this, subsonic.
"After Space Mountain closed without advance warning on April 10, 2003 – just days before The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Playhouse Disney attractions opened – Disneyland released a statement saying that “Space Mountain will be redesigned and relaunched in conjunction with the Disneyland 50th Anniversary in 2005. Construction will begin immediately and additions such as new special effects, digital technology, an integrated audio sound system and a completely revamped queue will provide a new level of excitement to Space Mountain.”
For most of the past two years, the Disneyland Web site has said only that Space Mountain would re-launch sometime in 2005, though there were rumors of potential re-opening dates in November, July and May. At the State of the Resort meeting in March, Disneyland President Matt Oiumet finally revealed that Space Mountain would reopen on July 15th, two days before Disneyland’s 50th anniversary.
Chrissie Allen, Senior Show Producer for the new Space Mountain, explains that this 27-month renovation gave Imagineers the opportunity to introduce effects that were not possible when Space Mountain opened in 1977. Riders will now enter “Space Station 77,” a renovated loading area featuring a new space probe. A “window” onto the cosmos replaces the cheesy status board, and riders will feel a slight sense of disorientation, as the space station appears to “rotate.”
Riders will board redesigned rocket vehicles, and enter lift A. To finally put the rumors to rest, there is no “launch” technology in the new ride. The mechanics of lift A and lift B are basically unchanged, but both have new special effects. Lift A features a “speed tunnel” effect similar to that used in the Walt Disney World attraction, lift B carries the rockets through a 90’ tunnel that appears to rotate around the vehicles. Allen said that during tests of the new effect, test subjects could not walk through a 30’ section of tunnel without grabbing for a handhold.
When riders reach the top of the lift, the first thing they might notice is that the mountain is completely dark. Allen says that there are no light leaks inside the mountain. 70 projectors fill the inside dome with stars and realistic-looking planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae, complete with comets. The “outer space” environment presented will match what photos from the Hubble telescope tell us space should look like, instead of the images from the original attraction which looked quite like flying chocolate chip cookies.
A recording counts down to the first drop, and then riders are sent hurtling through the mountain on a “flight path” that is virtually unchanged from the original. A brand-new custom soundtrack accompanies the ride. A longer re-entry tunnel with new lighting effects ends the experience.
Imagineers hinted that there were even more surprises to be revealed when Space Mountain returned in July, and there have been rumors that the ride would be subtly transformed at night, perhaps with a new music track. It seems there is some merit to the rumors, as close inspection of the newly installed Space Mountain sign outside the attraction shows a second set of fiber-optic lights that read “Rockit Mountain.” It is also possible that Disney will reopen Space Mountain in July as planned, and save the launch of “Rockit Mountain” for Spring 2006, when Tower of Terror is scheduled to receive the new random-drop upgrade."
Looks like you were right with your "Rockit Mountain" assessment, sub. I'm jealous of you all in sunny CA who will be able to experience the new mountain in July! Arrgghhh! It'll probably take another five years for me to get down there again.
"After Space Mountain closed without advance warning on April 10, 2003 – just days before The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Playhouse Disney attractions opened – Disneyland released a statement saying that “Space Mountain will be redesigned and relaunched in conjunction with the Disneyland 50th Anniversary in 2005. Construction will begin immediately and additions such as new special effects, digital technology, an integrated audio sound system and a completely revamped queue will provide a new level of excitement to Space Mountain.”
For most of the past two years, the Disneyland Web site has said only that Space Mountain would re-launch sometime in 2005, though there were rumors of potential re-opening dates in November, July and May. At the State of the Resort meeting in March, Disneyland President Matt Oiumet finally revealed that Space Mountain would reopen on July 15th, two days before Disneyland’s 50th anniversary.
Chrissie Allen, Senior Show Producer for the new Space Mountain, explains that this 27-month renovation gave Imagineers the opportunity to introduce effects that were not possible when Space Mountain opened in 1977. Riders will now enter “Space Station 77,” a renovated loading area featuring a new space probe. A “window” onto the cosmos replaces the cheesy status board, and riders will feel a slight sense of disorientation, as the space station appears to “rotate.”
Riders will board redesigned rocket vehicles, and enter lift A. To finally put the rumors to rest, there is no “launch” technology in the new ride. The mechanics of lift A and lift B are basically unchanged, but both have new special effects. Lift A features a “speed tunnel” effect similar to that used in the Walt Disney World attraction, lift B carries the rockets through a 90’ tunnel that appears to rotate around the vehicles. Allen said that during tests of the new effect, test subjects could not walk through a 30’ section of tunnel without grabbing for a handhold.
When riders reach the top of the lift, the first thing they might notice is that the mountain is completely dark. Allen says that there are no light leaks inside the mountain. 70 projectors fill the inside dome with stars and realistic-looking planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae, complete with comets. The “outer space” environment presented will match what photos from the Hubble telescope tell us space should look like, instead of the images from the original attraction which looked quite like flying chocolate chip cookies.
A recording counts down to the first drop, and then riders are sent hurtling through the mountain on a “flight path” that is virtually unchanged from the original. A brand-new custom soundtrack accompanies the ride. A longer re-entry tunnel with new lighting effects ends the experience.
Imagineers hinted that there were even more surprises to be revealed when Space Mountain returned in July, and there have been rumors that the ride would be subtly transformed at night, perhaps with a new music track. It seems there is some merit to the rumors, as close inspection of the newly installed Space Mountain sign outside the attraction shows a second set of fiber-optic lights that read “Rockit Mountain.” It is also possible that Disney will reopen Space Mountain in July as planned, and save the launch of “Rockit Mountain” for Spring 2006, when Tower of Terror is scheduled to receive the new random-drop upgrade."
Looks like you were right with your "Rockit Mountain" assessment, sub. I'm jealous of you all in sunny CA who will be able to experience the new mountain in July! Arrgghhh! It'll probably take another five years for me to get down there again.
