Renamed in honor of the late US president John F. Kennedy after his death in 1963, what became the Kennedy Space Center was formed out of existing US Air Force missile range infrastructure. The iconic Vehicle Assembly building is located on-site, as are the sites where Apollo and the Space Shuttle launched from. SLS continues the presence of NASA's flagship programs at the site. Kennedy Space Center is located on Merritt Island, and is surrounded by the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.
