Aerojet - Florida Facility and Canal

Florida Facility and Canal

25°21′46″N 80°33′42″W / 25.36278°N 80.56167°W / 25.36278; -80.56167
In the 1960s, Aerojet solid fuel technology was under consideration for use in Saturn first stages. A monolithic, 21-foot-diameter (6.4 m) motor was designed, which was too big to be transported by rail. A facility was constructed in the Florida Everglades where the motors could be built and tested, and then barged to Cape Canaveral. A canal was dug (C-111), the southernmost freshwater canal in Southeast Florida, and a drawbridge was installed for the U.S. Highway 1 crossing at mile marker 116. The canal was dubbed the "Aerojet Canal". SW 232nd Avenue was renamed "Aerojet Road". When the Aerojet product was not selected for the Saturn project, and segmented boosters were chosen for the Space Shuttle, the land and facilities were returned to the state, and are now managed by the South Florida Water Management District and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission as a nature preserve. The Aerojet signage still remains for both the road and canal and most of the facility's buildings remain intact, although weather-damaged.

The facility was the subject of documentaries Space-Miami and Aerojet Dade: An Unfinished Journey